Cynthia S. Goldsmith, Russell Regner/CDC via AP
This 2003 electron microscope image made available by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows mature, oval-shaped monkeypox virions, left, and spherical immature virions, right, obtained from a sample of human skin associated with the 2003 prairie dog outbreak.
Friday, Aug. 12, 2022 | 2:44 p.m.
Someone at Palo Verde High School has been diagnosed with monkeypox, according to an announcement today from the Clark County School District.
The district did not specify if the person was a student, teacher or other staffer at Palo Verde. It does not disclose personal medical information or comment on specific cases to protect the privacy of students and staff, officials said.
The Southern Nevada Health District conducts contact tracing and notifications and School District staff “respond accordingly to mitigate the spread of the virus and clean and disinfect areas identified according to CDC guidelines,” CCSD said.
Palo Verde Principal Lisa Schumacher said in a message to parents that the school is supporting the Health District in its investigation, and the Health District will notify parents if their children need to be tested or monitored.
“Monkeypox is not generally spread in the classroom setting,” Schumacher said. “The virus spreads from person to person through close physical contact with infectious monkeypox sores, bodily fluids, contact with objects or fabrics used by someone who has monkeypox or prolonged face-to-face contact.”
Clark County had 75 confirmed or probable cases of monkeypox as of today, according to SNHD.
Limited vaccines are available through the Health District, although none are approved for children.
