Monkeypox is a disease caused by an infection with the monkeypox virus. Monkeypox is in the same family of viruses as smallpox and does not have any relation to chickenpox. The first human case of monkeypox recorded was in 1970 in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Prior to 2022, almost all monkeypox cases were in central and western African countries.
Through July 2022, there were 5,189 confirmed cases of monkeypox in the US, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Washington, DC has the highest number of cases per capita, at 30 per 100,000 residents.
