Swedish authorities have confirmed the first known case outside of Africa of the more dangerous clade I variant of the mpox virus, which is known to spread through close contact. This marks a significant development in the ongoing global health challenge posed by the virus.
The Swedish government announced the case on Thursday, noting that it is the first time the variant has been identified outside of the African continent. Health officials have warned that additional cases may emerge in the region over the coming days.
“We have now confirmed that we have one case in Sweden of the more severe type of mpox, referred to as clade I,” Health and Social Affairs Minister Jakob Forssmed revealed during a news conference.
This announcement comes on the heels of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) decision to declare mpox a global public health emergency for the second time in two years. This declaration follows an outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where the virus has since spread to other countries.
As of now, neither the United States nor Canada have reported any cases of this particular variant. However, Sweden’s public health agency indicated on Thursday that “sporadic imported cases, like the current one, may continue to occur” in the upcoming weeks.
Swedish state epidemiologist Magnus Gisslen confirmed that the infected individual contracted the virus while traveling in a region of Africa currently experiencing a significant outbreak of mpox clade I. The individual sought medical attention upon returning to Stockholm and has since received appropriate care.
Gisslen emphasized that the presence of this case in Sweden does not increase the risk to the general public, a sentiment echoed by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), which currently assesses the risk to the broader population as very low.
Meanwhile, the WHO reported on Wednesday that mpox has claimed the lives of 548 people in the DRC this year alone. The organization has called for a coordinated international response to control the spread of the virus, particularly in light of recent outbreaks in neighboring African countries.
The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also declared mpox a public health emergency on the continent earlier this week, underlining the urgency of addressing the virus’s spread.
“Given the outbreaks of other mpox clades in the DRC and other African nations, it’s evident that a coordinated international response is essential to halt these outbreaks and save lives,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated in a social media post on Wednesday.