The US has likely recorded its first death in a person diagnosed with monkeypox in Texas who was also severely immunocompromised, according to health officials.The unnamed adult who was being treated in Harris County, died on Sunday.
The officials said the individual had "various severe illnesses" beside the virus, reports the Daily Mail.A cause of death is yet to be determined, but if it is confirmed to be monkeypox, it will make the fatality the first in the US from the virus during the current outbreak.
Globally, at least 15 global monkeypox deaths have now been reported, including two in Spain and one in Brazil.The US currently has the largest outbreak of the virus in the world, with 18,101 cases diagnosed to date including more than nine in 10 among gay or bisexual men.
The virus, native to West Africa, has spread to more than 40 countries so far, with nearly 50,000 cases confirmed.Recently, a report said that there had been fewer new cases of monkeypox recorded recently in some big US cities and nationwide, but experts say it is too soon to tell if the trend will continue.
The enters for Disease Control and Prevention Director Rochelle Walensky, last week, said that she is "cautiously optimistic" about the downward trend but warned that the overall case count is still growing.