A “probable” case of monkeypox in Philadelphia is likely the first case to be reported in Pennsylvania.

The Philadelphia Department of Public Health said Thursday it has “identified a Philadelphia resident who is a probable monkeypox case based on preliminary testing at the Pennsylvania Department of Health’s Bureau of Laboratories.”

The department said that confirmation testing at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is pending. It also is working with the CDC and state Department of Public Health to determine how the person was exposed and if that person has exposed anyone else.

“The threat to Philadelphians from monkeypox is extremely low,” said Health Department Acute Communicable Disease Program Manager Dana Perella in a statement.

“Monkeypox is much less contagious than covid-19 and is containable particularly when prompt care is sought for symptoms.

Vaccine to prevent or lessen the severity of illness is available through the CDC for high-risk contacts of persons infected with monkeypox, as is antiviral treatment for patients with monkeypox.”

She said residents and visitors should feel safe “with the proper precautions.”

The department said it is not releasing any other information about the infected person to protect his or her privacy.

According to the CDC there are 19 confirmed cases of monkeypox in 10 states. The outbreak, the Philadelphia Department of Health said, “was first confirmed in a British resident on May 6, 2022. Since then, cases have been confirmed in 29 other non-endemic countries, including the United States.”

Worldwide, there has been one death associated with the outbreak. According to the World Health Organization, there are more than 250 cases worldwide.

Monkeypox, according to health officials, is spread from close contact. Initial symptoms are fever, fatigue, headache and enlarged lymph nodes. A rash may appear on the face and the palms, arms, legs and other body parts.

“Some recent cases began with a rash on the genitals or perianal region only with no other initial symptoms. Over a week or two, the rash changes from small, flat spots to tiny blisters that are similar to chicken pox, and then to larger blisters. These can take several weeks to scab over. Once the scabs fall off, the person is no longer contagious,” the Philadelphia Department of Health said.

Anyone with symptoms should see their health care provider. People with flu-like symptoms but no rash should be tested for covid-19, the department said.

According to the CDC, monkeypox was first discovered in 1958 in colonies of monkeys. The first human case was reported in 1970.

In 2003, the virus was introduced in the United States from a shipment of animals from Ghana imported to Texas. The shipment contained hundreds of small mammals representing nine different species, including six types of rodents, according to the CDC. Some of those infected animals were housed near prairie dogs “at the facilities of an Illinois animal vendor. These prairie dogs were sold as pets before they developed signs of infection. All people infected with monkeypox became ill after having contact with infected pet prairie dogs.”

Recently, the World Health Organization reported that the vast majority of the global cases are in men who have sex with men.

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