Alberta’s health authorities have now detected four cases of monkeypox in the province, chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw said Thursday, during a COVID-19 update.
On Tuesday, Hinshaw announced there were two cases of the poxvirus in Alberta.
She said all of the individuals are adults and are self-isolating and co-operating with contact tracing and the public health investigation.
“At this time, the overall risk of contracting monkeypox remains low in Alberta,” Hinshaw said.
The chief medical officer of health said with the very small number of cases, the locations of those cases are not being released to protect people’s confidentiality, but that could change as the circumstances develop.
“It is important to be aware that most but not all cases in the recent global outbreak have been seen in men who reported sex with multiple male partners,” Hinshaw said. “This means that there may be an elevated risk in that community right now.”
She said provincial health authorities have reached out to organizations serving the LGBTQ community and provided them with information to support outreach efforts.
“I want to be clear that this specific outreach does not mean this virus can only impact one community,” Hinshaw said. “We are working with these organizations and sharing this current risk factor information to ensure that people have accurate, timely data about the outbreak.
“This is not being done to shame or stigmatize anyone, and it does not mean that anyone who has contracted monkeypox or is a close contact has done anything wrong.”
Hinshaw said she was sorry to hear some groups felt stigmatized by fact sheets provided to the community.
“We absolutely welcome that feedback and will continue to work to do our best to not stigmatize and at the same time provide current accurate information.”
The chief medical officer of health stressed monkeypox is mainly spread by close, skin-to-skin contact or by touching things contaminated with the virus like shared clothing or bedding.
“It is critical that anyone experiencing symptoms such as fever, swollen glands, new sores or a rash self-isolate and call Health Link at 811,” Hinshaw said, noting the symptoms can be common.
“However, being aware of these symptoms is particularly important for anyone who has recently had a new sexual partner or anyone who believes they have been in prolonged, close contact with someone with monkeypox.”