United States: A new form of mpox, called clade Ib, has been found in two more people who were in close or in intimate contact with someone already infected, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to three.
So, the health authorities have said that while the new variant is concerning, the risk to the general population remains low. This variant is part of a larger global health concern, as the World Health Organization declared a health emergency related to mpox in August. Experts are closely monitoring the situation to ensure that the virus does not spread further.
As reported by the Reuters, “Mpox is highly contagious in households with close contact and therefore it is not surprising to see other cases within the same household,” UKHSA added.
UKHSA stated last week that the first case, in a patient who had recently travelled to affected countries in Africa, was confirmed in London and the patient was moved to a specialist hospital.
Both new patients are also under specialist care in the city, attending healthcare professionals have confirmed preparedness to deal with any more cases UKHSA said.LA 19 African countries have reported more than 48,000 suspected mpox cases and 1,048 deaths this year, with cases in the continent rising by 500% from the previous year as per the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC).
Mpox clade Ib have also infected people in Germany, Sweden, India and Thailand. It is a different form from clade II, which circulated globally in 2022, mainly in MSM, or men who got intimate with men.
Mpox is a viral illness characterized by flu-like symptoms and ulcerous lesions that may be deadly despite generally having mild symptoms. Clade Ib is expected to more pathogenic than clade II.
The two types have a propensity for being spread through skin-to-skin contact, including sexual contact.
This situation has been closely watched to prevent the further spread of this new mpox strain which could be really dangerous to the people.