A second death linked to monkeypox has been recorded in the United States, health authorities announced on Tuesday, as new infections are falling in the country.
The deceased, who lived in Los Angeles County, was “severely immunocompromised” and had been hospitalized, California health authorities said, without giving further details for confidentiality reasons.
The first recorded death of a person with monkeypox was announced in late August in Texas, but authorities then said they were continuing to determine the disease’s role in the death of this patient, who also had a very weakened immune system.
The number of new cases of monkeypox is declining in the United States following peaking around mid-August. Since the first case in the country in May, some 22,000 more have been detected.
To curb the epidemic, which mainly affects the gay community, the United States has focused its efforts on a vaccination campaign for people at risk.
Cases of monkeypox, a viral disease characterized by skin lesions, usually resolve on their own, but can be very painful, and sometimes serious.
A study published Tuesday detailed two cases of encephalomyelitis – an inflammation affecting the nervous system, including the spinal cord – associated with infection with monkeypox.
Both men were in their 30s and in good health, according to the description of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the nation’s main federal health agency.
Both have notably developed motor weaknesses and urinary disorders. They had to be hospitalized, but were finally able to leave the hospital, with a walking aid.
MRIs showed spinal cord damage.
The mechanism by which these neurological complications from monkeypox infection develop is “unclear,” the CDC said, while stressing that they remain “rare.”