The monkeypox virus can stubbornly stick to surfaces touched by infected people, a study found.
Even following extensive cleaning, the potentially deadly disease can still cling to household items in a patient’s home — but there’s no evidence you can get acne yourself following touching an infected object.
Most of the samples in the experiment — 21 of 30 samples — tested positive for the virus following coming into contact with an infected person, according to a report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The experiment investigated a home in Utah where two monkeypox patients lived with others who were not infected.
Investigators wiped down 30 household items from nine different areas of the house, while two patients remained symptomatic and were therefore actively spreading the infection.
The scientists tested two types of objects — marking soft surfaces that can absorb liquids, such as clothing or furniture, as “porous,” and hard surfaces, such as handles and switches, as “non-porous.”
Both types of objects were found to carry monkeypox even following cleaning and disinfection.
All three “porous” surfaces tested positive, while 17 of the 25 “non-porous” surfaces had traces of the virus.
Only one item – the oven knob – was negative, the rest of the samples were inconclusive.
But despite evidence of monkeypox on these household items, none of the samples had a positive culture for the virus — meaning the disease was not “live” and might not infect others.
No other members of the family have contracted the disease, so scientists aren’t sure how much risk this finding poses to others who share a space with a monkeypox patient.
The virus spreads primarily through physical contact, which means you’re most likely to get monkeypox if you’re in direct contact with another person.
As troubling as the evidence of the bug clinging to household items sounds, the finding may not pose a threat if the virus doesn’t survive on those surfaces long enough to spread to others.
“Monkeypox virus DNA was detected in samples from many objects and surfaces, indicating some level of contamination in the home environment,” the CDC report reads.
“The inability to detect live virus suggests that the viability of the virus may decay over time or through chemical or environmental inactivation.”
“Their cleaning and disinfection practices during this period may have limited the level of contamination within the household,” it added.
It is hoped that scientific research will help control the spread of monkeypox around the world.
In the United States, there are 13,517 cases, with California and New York having the most.
There are currently regarding 20 cases of the bug detected a day in the UK, down from 35 a week ago.
The latest figures from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) show there are 3,081 confirmed cases in the UK and a further 114 at high risk of infection.
Gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men are at a higher risk of contracting monkeypox.
Dr William Welfare, Director of Events at UKHSA, said: “While recent figures suggest the growth of the outbreak has slowed, we continue to see new cases every day.
“While anyone can be infected with monkeypox, the majority of monkeypox cases in the UK still occur among gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, and infection is mainly spread through close contact in interconnected sexual networks.
“Continue to watch for symptoms, including rashes and blisters, especially if you’ve recently had a new sexual partner.”
While there is a vaccine to protect once morest monkeypox, efforts to vaccinate those most vulnerable to the disease have slowed due to shortages.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the growing number of cases a public health emergency and rolled out vaccinations to those most at risk.
But companies making vaccines are now warning that demand continues to rise.
Pharmaceutical manufacturer Bavarian Nordic makes Jynneos injections.
