What is the Alaskan smallpox virus or Alaskan smallpox, given the first reported death?

(CNN) — Health officials in Alaska have identified the first known death associated with a newly discovered virus called Alaskapox, or Alaskan smallpox.

Since it opened in 2015, there have been seven cases of Alaskapox, according to the state Department of Health. The most recent case was an elderly man who died last month.

“This is the first case of serious Alaskapox infection resulting in hospitalization and death,” the health department said in a statement last week.

The man had a weakened immune system due to cancer treatment, which likely contributed to the severity of his illness, authorities said.

Experts say the disease is usually mild and infections in humans remain rare because the virus is found primarily in small mammal populations throughout Alaska.

“Six of the seven cases were mild and self-limiting, so the patient did not even require supportive care from a health care provider,” said Dr. Joe McLaughlin, state epidemiologist and chief of the Alaska Department of Public Health’s epidemiology division. .

However, McLaughlin said much is unknown about the virus, including how it spreads from animals to humans and how long it has been around.

What is Alaskapox or Alaskan pox?

Alaskapox was only recently discovered, but McLaughlin says the virus is endemic to Alaska’s small mammal populations, regularly infecting red voles and shrews, as well as other rodents such as red squirrels.

The virus belongs to the Orthopoxvirus genus, which also includes better-known viruses such as pox and MPox, which typically infect mammals and cause skin lesions.

McLaughlin notes that Alaskapox is an “old world” virus typically found in Africa, Asia and Europe.

“It is possible that this virus has been present in Alaska for hundreds, if not thousands, of years,” he says.

However, the discovery of more Alaskapox cases does not mean the virus has become more prevalent in the state’s small mammal population in recent years.

“What has changed is the awareness among medical professionals and the general public that Alaskapox virus is possible,” McLaughlin said. “It is possible that the cases occurred before 2015, were only subclinical or weakly clinical, and simply went undiagnosed.”

“Geographically distinct” virus

While it’s unclear how long the virus has been circulating in the state, infections are known to occur after contact with animals, according to Dr. Julia Rogers, an epidemiologist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Epidemiological Intelligence Service. States are assigned to the Alaska Department of Health.

“These people became infected as a result of some contact with an animal,” he said.

Alaska’s first case of smallpox was discovered in July 2015 in a woman who lived near Fairbanks in central Alaska, according to the state health department. Since then, five more cases have been reported in the Fairbanks area.

The most recent case, which resulted in the first known smallpox death in Alaska, is also the first case found outside of Fairbanks. It was discovered about 500 miles south on the Kenai Peninsula, authorities said.

This indicates that Alaskapoxa is more geographically widespread than previously thought.

“We were able to sequence the virus from this patient’s case, and it showed that there was a difference between this case and the clusters of cases that we were able to sequence from Fairbanks,” Rogers said.

However, he adds that the recent discovery is likely due to geographic differences in the virus and is not the result of the virus “moving from the Fairbanks area.”

None of the seven people diagnosed with Alaskapax had recently traveled outside the state or country, and no cases have been identified outside Alaska, experts said.

Possible spread through pets.

More sampling of affected animal populations is needed to fully understand how the virus spreads from animals to humans, but contact with small mammals and encountered pets may play a role, Rogers said.

Health authorities say the man who died lived in a wooded area and cared for a stray cat that preyed on small mammals.

“The stray cat would come into the house from time to time and play with her and scratch her a lot,” McLaughlin explained.

The Alaska Department of Public Health says cat scratches are a “possible source” of infection in this case.

“This is also consistent with patterns of data obtained from other Old World orthopox viruses,” McLaughlin added. “A traumatic event usually results in a person becoming infected by a pet.”

Symptoms and treatment of alascapox

With the exception of the latest case, all Alaskapox patients had mild illness that resolved on its own within a few weeks, according to the state Department of Health.

Symptoms usually include one or more skin lesions that at first glance look like a spider bite, McLaughlin said. Swollen lymph nodes, muscle pain, and fever may also occur.

“If there is any cluster or individual symptoms that meet this case definition, and you do not have any other known cause or no known medical condition that contributes to these symptoms, you should definitely contact your doctor.” and they can do additional evaluation and testing,” Rogers said.

People with weakened immune systems may experience more severe symptoms, health authorities say. The man who died from alascapox suffered from slow wound healing, malnutrition, acute renal failure and respiratory failure.

Antiviral medications and immunoglobulins may be prescribed, McLaughlin said.

Experts note that although some orthopox viruses can be transmitted from person to person through direct contact with skin lesions, there is no evidence that one person with alascapox can infect another person.

“People outside of Alaska shouldn’t worry,” McLaughlin says. “Those who live in Alaska just need to be aware that this is an infection that they can contract.”