Skip to main content
About IDPH

Mpox Guidance

In alignment with the recent announcement by the World Health Organization and the concurrence of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, IDPH is now using the term “mpox” to refer to what has been known as monkeypox virus. This change is intended to enhance the response to mpox by using a term that does not conjure bias or stigma and to strengthen efforts to protect communities that are most impacted by the virus.

  • College and University Guidance MPV infections across the United States continue to increase and the MPV outbreak will remain active when colleges and universities are back in session. It is possible that tight-knit social and sexual contacts/activity on college campuses may lead to additional spread of the MPV virus
  • Day Care Guidance MPV is a disease that can cause flu-like symptoms and a rash. Human-to-human transmission of MPV occurs by direct contact with lesions or infected body fluids, or from exposure to respiratory secretions during prolonged face-to-face close contact. A
  • Patient Isolation Procedures Current data suggest people can spread monkeypox from the time symptoms start until all symptoms have resolved, including full healing of the rash with formation of a fresh layer of skin. Ideally, people with monkeypox would remain in isolation for the duration of illness, which typically lasts two to four weeks
  • Prevention Steps from Animals with MPV There are a number of measures that can be taken to prevent infection with monkeypox virus from animals: Avoid contact with animals that could harbor the virus in countries with monkeypox, such as central and west Africa (including rodents, marsupials and non-human primates and animals that are sick or that have been found dead in areas where monkeypox occurs)
  • School Guidance MPV is a disease that can cause flu-like symptoms and a rash. Human-to-human transmission of MPV occurs by direct contact with lesions or infected body fluids, or from exposure to respiratory secretions during prolonged face-to-face close contact. A
  • Spa Guidance MPV is a disease that causes a rash that often follows flu-like symptoms. Human-to-human transmission of MPV occurs by direct contact with lesions or infected body fluids, or less likely, from exposure to respiratory secretions during prolonged face-to-face contact