Old Main on the Penn State University campus.

UNIVERSITY PARK — The Pennsylvania Department of Health has confirmed that a student at Penn State’s University Park campus tested positive for monkeypox on Aug. 13, according to a news release from the university.

The patient lives off campus, has been seen by health care providers, and is currently isolating and recovering, the university said.

Penn State’s University Health Services contacted the Department of Health, and both agencies are monitoring the case. The student’s close contacts have been identified and notified through contract tracing conducted by the Pennsylvania Department of Health.

Monkeypox, a viral infection primarily spread through prolonged close contact, is not a sexually transmitted disease, the release stated. Symptoms of monkeypox include fever, rash and swollen lymph nodes. To date, there have been no deaths reported in the United States due to the monkeypox virus. In most cases, monkeypox resolves on its own without prescription medicine.

Monkeypox often begins with fever, headache, muscle aches, backache, swollen lymph nodes, a general feeling of discomfort and exhaustion.

Typically, within one to three days after the fever, the patient develops a rash, often first on the face, but sometimes on other parts of the body.

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