The first case of the more dangerous strain of monkeypox outside Africa has been reported in Sweden.
According to Sweden’s public health agency, the infected person caught the illness during a stay in an area of Africa where there is currently a major outbreak of mpox Clade 1.
There are two types of mpox Clade 1, and the infected person in Sweden has been identified as Clade 1b, which was first witnessed in the Democratic Republic of Congo, spreading to Burundi, Kenya, and Rwanda, before getting to Sweden.
The patient is receiving care in the Stockholm area, but there is no risk of the disease spreading to the general population.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the outbreak of mpox in parts of Africa, now classifying this type of monkeypox as a public health emergency for other countries.
According to reports, at least 450 people have passed away during the initial outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with the disease spreading to areas of Central and East Africa.
Mpox, previously known as monkeypox, is transmitted through sex, close contact, skin-to-skin contact, and talking or breathing close to another person. This more dangerous type of monkeypox can be fatal, with four in 100 cases leading to death.
Some of its symptoms are high fever, headaches, rashes, sores, muscle aches, and skin lesions. According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, the symptoms usually appear 6-13 days after infection.
Sweden’s health authorities and the WHO/Europe are working together on “how best to manage the first confirmed case of mpox Clade 1b” and urged other countries to act quickly and transparently like Sweden.
Authorities anticipate that more cases of Clade 1 are likely to emerge in the European region in the coming days and weeks.
