First Mpox case reported in Europe – but authorities unconcerned

For the first time, there is a case of Mpox outside of the African continent, where the disease has recently been on the rise. Swedish authorities identified the case of the new variant Clade I in the Stockholm region. “We have now received confirmation that we have a serious variant of Mpox in Sweden,” said Health Minister Jakob Forssmed.

The infected person contracted the disease during a stay in an African region where there has been a major outbreak of the disease, said the Director General of the Swedish Public Health Agency, Olivia Wigzell, at a press conference on Thursday. The World Health Organization (WHO) says it is in contact with the Swedish authorities to assist the country with the first case of Mpox of the clade Ib variant.

Mpox used to be called monkeypox because it was first discovered by chance in monkeys. The virus is related to the classic smallpox virus. It causes mainly skin rashes, but also fever and muscle pain. There are two vaccines, but not nearly enough doses in Africa. According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), clade I infections had previously only been observed in Central Africa, particularly in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Mpox case in Sweden harmless according to authorities

However, the Swedish Health Authority is not yet particularly concerned about the case. According to Wigzell, there is no danger that the case will have an impact on the wider population. “In our opinion, the case itself does not currently require any further infection control measures, but we are of course following developments closely,” said Wigzell at the press conference with the Minister of Social Affairs.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) also continues to assess the risk of infection as very low.

Only on Wednesday, the WHO declared the highest alert level for the second time in two years due to the spread of the viral disease in Africa. According to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, this is a health emergency of international concern. According to experts, Clade I is likely to be more contagious than previous variants and cause a more severe infection.

The reason is now an outbreak of the virus infection in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which has also spread to neighboring countries. The outbreak in Congo began with the spread of an endemic strain known as Clade I. The new variant Clade Ib appears to spread more easily through routine close contact, including sexual contact.