Were discovered in 2015

First human death from Alaska pox

Alaska pox is characterized by, among other things, a clearly visible rash with a skin lesion.(Bild: Alaska Department of Health)

On the Kenai Peninsula south of the city of Anchorage in the US state of Alaska, an elderly man recently died from an infection with Alaska pox - a disease that was only discovered in 2015. He was one of only seven people to have contracted the disease to date.

According to the Alaska Department of Health, the man was admitted to hospital in Fairbanks at the end of November with painful red bumps in his armpits. It is "unclear" how the patient came into contact with the virus. However, the man reported that he had taken care of a stray cat that had scratched him. The virus may have been transmitted in the process.

Patient died in hospital at the end of January
According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), the man eventually died of kidney and lung failure at the end of January. "The man's immune system was weakened by cancer and he was therefore particularly vulnerable," epidemiologist Julia Rogers told the Anchorage Daily News.

Doctors and hospitals in Alaska have been instructed by health authorities to test for Alaska pox in suspected cases and to report further cases immediately. Symptoms of the disease include one or more skin lesions, swollen lymph nodes and muscle pain.

The northern red-backed vole (pictured), which is found throughout Alaska, is one species that has been shown to be infected with Alaska pox virus.(Bild: Alaska Department of Health/Jim Dau)

Mice and pets as virus hosts
Initial findings indicate that the Alaska pox virus occurs primarily in small mammals. The virus has so far been identified most frequently in red-backed voles (see picture above) and shrews, but pets (such as cats and dogs, note) may also play a role in its spread.

So far, no human-to-human transmission of the Alaska pox virus has been documented. However, the disease can be transmitted through direct contact with the skin lesions, according to the Alaska Department of Health. It recommends that people with "skin lesions possibly caused by Alaska pox should cover the affected area with a bandage."