We usually think of mpox as a skin infection. So, people can get a rash. It can look like chickenpox. It can look like herpes. And the rash can involve some very sensitive parts of people's bodies, like their genitals, their anus or their butt, their mouths. And those tend to be very painful lesions.
There may be some folks who have longer term side effects from having the infection. Like, there could be what's called a stricture, which means narrowing of tubes because of scarring.
What we've learned as we've seen this mpox outbreak is that people living with HIV who don't have a undetectable viral load, individuals with very low CD4 counts can have really severe outcomes with this disease.
Mpox vaccines are available!
Get protected against mpox. Vaccination is available at no cost at many locations. Your local health department can tell you more about options in your community. Find a vaccine near you.
