As we monitor the global outbreak of monkeypox, we will continue to provide information from public health authorities and adjust our response, recommendations, and resources as needed.

For the most updated information, we recommend the resources available through the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Indiana Department of Health.

The Facts

  • Monkeypox is a rare viral infection caused by the monkeypox virus that anyone can contract.
  • Monkeypox can make you sick including a rash or sores (pox), often with an earlier flu-like illness.
  • Monkeypox predominantly spreads through close, physical contact between people (often prolonged skin-to-skin contact) including:
    • Direct contact with someone's rash, sores, or scabs due to monkeypox
    • Contact with objects, fabrics (clothing, bedding, or towels), and surfaces that have been used by someone with monkeypox
    • Rarely through respiratory droplets or oral fluids from a person with monkeypox
    • This contact can happen during intimate sexual contact
  • It can spread to others from the time symptoms start until the rash has fully healed and a fresh layer of skin has formed.

Monkeypox symptoms

People with monkeypox get a rash that will go through several stages, including scabs, before healing. The rash can initially look like pimples or blisters and may be painful or itchy.

Other symptoms of monkeypox can include:

  • Fever
  • Chills
  • Swollen lymph nodes
  • Exhaustion
  • Muscle aches and backache
  • Headache
  • Respiratory symptoms (e.g. sore throat, nasal congestion, or cough)

You may experience all or only a few symptoms:

  • Sometimes, people have flu-like symptoms before the rash.
  • Some people get a rash first, followed by other symptoms.
  • Others only experience a rash.

If You Have a New or Unexplained Rash, Sores, or Other Symptoms

  • See a healthcare provider as soon as possible. You should wear a mask and cover your rash with loose clothing to visit health care providers (including the UE Health Center).
  • Call the UE Health Center at (812) 488-2033. They will determine whether you need to be tested on site. The UE Health Center can collect specimens and send to the Department of Health for test results.
  • Ensure others do not touch your rash by distancing yourself and covering up rash with loose clothing if you are around others. It is advised you isolate yourself until a health care provider can evaluate the rash and/or your test results return.
  • Avoid close contact with others – including sex or being intimate with anyone - until you been seen by a healthcare provider

If You Have Been Diagnosed with Monkeypox

  • Inform the Health Center. Students and employees should contact the Health Center to report confirmed monkeypox results. For students, this information will be shared with the Dean of Students who can arrange class excuses, isolation space on campus for residential students, etc. Employees can contact the Department of Human Resources if they need assistance with informing their supervisor, filing for sick time, etc.
  • Identify close contacts. It's important to notify your close contacts that they may have been exposed to monkeypox as soon as possible, so they can watch for signs and symptoms, get tested and isolate if they have symptoms, and consider getting vaccinated. By letting your close contacts know they may have been exposed to monkeypox, you are helping to protect them and everyone around them. The CDC has a helpful resource for how to identify close contacts and guidance to give them.
  • Isolate from others. Isolation may be required for 2 to 4 weeks based on advice from a health provider.
    • If needed, residential students can request isolation space from the Office of Residence Life.
    • Depending on the level of risk, you may or may not be able to return to work or classes. This may vary from case to case. There are CDC guidelines available for those who must isolate and those who may be able to attend limited activities (but requires masking, covering of lesions, disinfecting shared equipment, etc).
  • Follow the treatment and prevention recommendations of your healthcare provider
  • Review the CDC guidance on taking care of yourself/others and managing your symptoms. Avoid close contact with others – including sex or being intimate with anyone - until all your sores have healed and you have a fresh layer of skin formed
  • During isolation at home, people with monkeypox should clean and disinfect the spaces they occupy regularly to limit household contamination.

For more information, please visit www.cdc.gov/monkeypox

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