Health authorities in Europe issued a warning on Friday to prepare for more cases of a deadly strain of mpox that has claimed hundreds of lives in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In response, China announced that it would begin screening travelers for the disease after the first cases of this new, more lethal strain were reported outside Africa, in Sweden and Pakistan.
The disease is caused by a virus that is transmitted to humans from animals but can also spread from person to person through close physical contact. Symptoms include fever, muscle aches, and large boil-like skin lesions.
On Wednesday, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the rapid spread of this new strain, known as Clade 1b, a public health emergency of international concern—the highest alert level the UN agency can issue.
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), based in Stockholm, stated on Friday that the overall risk to the general population in Europe is “low” but urged countries to be ready to detect it.
The ECDC emphasized that “effective surveillance, laboratory testing, epidemiological investigation, and contact tracing capacities will be vital for detecting cases” across the continent.
“Due to the close links between Europe and Africa, we must be prepared for more imported clade I cases,” ECDC director Pamela Rendi-Wagner said in a statement.
Hundreds Killed in DRC:
The mpox virus has ravaged the Democratic Republic of Congo, resulting in 548 deaths so far this year, according to the country’s Health Minister, Samuel-Roger Kamba, who made the announcement on Thursday.
Nigeria has also reported 39 cases of mpox since the beginning of the year, although none have been fatal, as confirmed by Jide Idris, the director-general of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention.
Countries previously unaffected by the virus, such as Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, and Uganda, have also reported outbreaks, according to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
On Thursday, Sweden’s Public Health Agency informed AFP that it had registered a case of Clade 1b, marking the first known infection of this strain outside of Africa. Epidemiologist Magnus Gisslén from the agency stated that the patient was infected during a visit to “the part of Africa where there is a major outbreak of mpox Clade 1.”
As of Friday, the specific strain that caused the mpox case in Pakistan was not yet identified, according to a statement from the health ministry. The patient, a 34-year-old man, had arrived from a Gulf country and is being treated in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Irshad Roghani, director of public health in the province, noted that this was “the first confirmed case we have this year” of mpox in Pakistan.
China announced that it would begin screening people and goods entering the country for mpox over the next six months. The customs administration stated on Friday that individuals arriving from countries with outbreaks, those who have been in contact with mpox cases, or those showing symptoms should “declare to customs when entering the country.
” Additionally, vehicles, containers, and items from affected areas will need to be sanitized, according to the statement.
Vaccination Drive:
Mpox has two subtypes: the more virulent and deadly Clade 1, which is endemic to the Congo Basin in Central Africa, and Clade 2, which is endemic to West Africa. A global outbreak that began in 2022, involving the Clade 2b subclade, resulted in approximately 140 deaths out of around 90,000 cases, primarily affecting gay and bisexual men.
On Wednesday, the US Department of Health announced it would donate 50,000 doses of an mpox vaccine to the Democratic Republic of Congo, emphasizing that vaccination would be “a critical element of the response to this outbreak.
” Meanwhile, Danish drugmaker Bavarian Nordic stated that it would be prepared to produce up to 10 million doses of its mpox-targeted vaccine by 2025.
The WHO’s European regional office in Copenhagen commented on the recent mpox case in Sweden, describing it as “a clear reflection of the interconnectedness of our world.” However, the office advised against travel restrictions and border closures, stating that they “don’t work and should be avoided.”
