In brief
Two new cases of mpox have been identified in the UK, both connected to a recently infected individual. The UK's Health Security Agency reassures that the threat of widespread transmission remains low as vaccinations are administered.
Two new cases of mpox, a variant contributing to a surge in infections in central Africa, have been identified in the United Kingdom. Health officials report that both individuals had close contact with a previously confirmed case in Britain, emphasizing that the risk of widespread transmission remains low. All three cases are currently receiving treatment at hospitals in London and have been offered the mpox vaccine, according to the United Kingdom Health Security Agency (UKHSA). Susan Hopkins, the chief medical adviser of the agency, noted that "mpox is highly infectious in households with close contact," and it is not unusual to see subsequent cases emerge from the same household. While the disease, formerly known as monkeypox, has been endemic in parts of Africa for over five decades, a significant outbreak occurred globally in 2022, extending to Europe and America. Recent data suggests a decline in mpox cases across the UK and Europe since then. However, the recently discovered subtype, Clade Ia, poses a greater threat as it has led to over 30,000 infections and nearly 1,000 fatalities in the Democratic Republic of Congo this year, according to the World Health Organization. Alarmingly, UNICEF reports that more than half of the new mpox cases involve children.
