Mpox Virus Outbreak: The head of Europe's disease prevention agency on Friday cautioned that the continent will witness more imported cases of a new mpox (formerly known as monkeypox) strain in the coming weeks. The risk of sustained transmission, however, remains low, she said. The statement came as the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control raised its risk assessment for sporadic cases of mpox clade I in Europe to 'moderate'.
The risk was high for travellers to affected areas in Africa in close contact with people there, and moderate for their contacts. "There will be more cases in the coming weeks. That's the expectation... But regarding the risk [for the] general European population, we have to say that our assessment is that the risk is very low at the moment," European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control director Pamela Rendi-Wagner said in an interview.
MPOX OUTBREAK IN AFRICA
An outbreak of mpox in Democratic Republic of Congo caused by two different forms of mpox, an endemic form and a new offshoot called clade Ib, has caused global concern after it spread to more countries in Africa. On Thursday, Sweden became the first country outside Africa to confirm a case of clade Ib.
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The patient had travelled to "the part of Africa where there is a major outbreak of mpox clade I", said Sweden's public health body. This came a day after the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared mpox a global public health emergency in light of the ongoing outbreak in parts of Africa.
Data from the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that during the past week alone, somewhere around 2,000 new mpox cases have been reported across Africa. Last week, the health body said some 38,465 mpox cases and 1,456 deaths had been reported in Africa since January 2022, affecting at least 16 countries across all five regions of Africa.
MPOX SYMPTOMS
Usually mild, mpox is fatal in rare cases. It is characterised by flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions on the body.
(With inputs from agencies)