Fifth case of Clade Ib mpox confirmed in England with patient under specialist care in hospital
by Sonia Sharma · ChronicleLiveA new case of Clade Ib mpox has been detected in England, taking the number to five.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has confirmed the case was detected in Leeds and the individual is now under specialist care at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. They had recently returned from Uganda, which is seeing community transmission of Clade Ib mpox.
The UKHSA and NHS will not be disclosing any further details about the individual. However, they say the risk to the UK population remains low.
This is the fifth case of Clade Ib mpox confirmed in England in recent weeks. It has no links to the previous cases identified. All four previous cases were from the same household and all have now fully recovered.
Close contacts of the fifth patient are being followed up by UKHSA and partner organisations. Any contacts will be offered testing and vaccination as needed and advised on any necessary further care if they have symptoms or test positive.
Professor Susan Hopkins, chief medical adviser at UKHSA, said: "It is thanks to clinicians rapidly recognising the symptoms and our diagnostics tests that we have been able to detect this new case. The risk to the UK population remains low following this fifth case, and we are working rapidly to trace close contacts and reduce the risk of any potential spread. In accordance with established protocols, investigations are underway to learn how the individual acquired the infection and to assess whether there are any further associated cases."
Clade Ib mpox has been widely circulating in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda and Kenya in recent months. Imported cases have been detected in Canada, Sweden, India, Thailand and Germany. The UKHSA says there has been extensive planning under way to ensure healthcare professionals are equipped and prepared to respond to any further confirmed cases.
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