How common is fever in mpox?

Mpox can cause fever, tiredness, headache, muscle aches, backache and swollen lymph nodes. A rash or skin lesions may develop on different body areas, including the face, hands, mouth or genital area. Symptoms do not always appear in the same order, and their appearance can vary from person to person.

Fever alone is not enough to identify mpox. A healthcare professional considers skin changes, possible close contact, recent travel and other symptoms when deciding whether examination or testing is needed.

Contact a healthcare service for advice if you have fever with an unexplained new rash, lesions, or a relevant exposure. Before an in-person visit, ask how to attend safely. Avoid close skin-to-skin contact, sharing towels or bedding, and contact with lesions until you have received individual advice.

Seek urgent assessment for trouble breathing, confusion, severe weakness, dehydration, severe eye pain or vision changes, or rapidly worsening symptoms. Prompt clinical advice is also important for painful lesions, difficulty passing urine, pregnancy, young children, and people with weakened immune systems.

Ask whether your symptoms need testing, how to care for any skin lesions, and how to reduce the chance of passing an infection to people at home. Ask which changes in pain, hydration, breathing or eye symptoms need urgent reassessment.