Sweden has registered Europe’s first case of the more dangerous variant of mpox which is spreading rapidly in Africa, after the WHO declared a global public health emergency.
“A person who sought care” in Stockholm “has been diagnosed with mpox caused by the clade I variant. It is the first case caused by clade I to be diagnosed outside the African continent,” Sweden’s Public Health Agency said.
The World Health Organisation on Wednesday declared mpox a global public health emergency for the second time in two years following an outbreak of a new variant called clade 1b in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) that has quickly spread to other countries.
The patient had travelled to an country hit by an outbreak of the virus, Jakob Forssmed, Sweden’s Minister of Social Affairs, told a press conference.
Mpox spreads by physical contact and causes a characteristic lumpy rash, fever, aches, and pains. It can be fatal.
There are two types of mpox, Clade 1 and Clade 2. While Clade 2 caused a public health emergency in 2022 it was relatively mild and has already appeared in Sweden.
Clade 1b, which appeared in the DRC in September of last year, is said to be “the most dangerous yet”.
It has a higher mortality rate than clade 2 – said to be between 5-10 per cent compared to 0.2 per cent – and has already accounted for 511 deaths and nearly 15,000 cases in Africa this year.
This is a breaking story and will be updated.