By Alex Lang
New York (Knewz) - While many of the country's monkeypox cases have been found in members of the gay community, a recent survey found only half have made changes to their sexual behavior.
There have been 17,432 confirmed monkeypox cases in the U.S., and it has been found in every state. However, some areas - such as Los Angeles and New York - have seen a decrease in the number of new cases.
A recent study by the Centers for Disease Control and noted by University of Minnesota researchers found that 48 percent of men in the gay community reported reducing their number of sexual partners.
Only 50 percent reported reducing one-time sexual encounters or reducing sex with partners met on dating apps.
The survey also found that about 20 percent have received at least one dose of the monkeypox vaccine.
Federal health officials have increased the number of monkeypox vaccines available to slow the disease's spread. Monkeypox is rarely fatal and is best known for its scars. It spreads through skin-to-skin contact and has been reported mostly in the Gay community during the 2022 outbreak.
The survey on monkeypox behaviors found that vaccine rates were highest among Hispanic men and lowest among the Black community.
"Among 662 persons who had not received monkeypox vaccine, 180 [people] indicated that they had tried to get vaccinated," the authors wrote.
The survey found about 11 percent of people said they knew someone who had contracted the virus. While 82 percent said they believed they could protect themselves from the virus.
In some of the hardest hit areas, the disease's spread appears to be slowing. Such as in New York City, where at one point, 70 new cases were reported each day. But that figure has dropped to about 50 new cases each day.