Sweden confirms first case of mpox variant outside of Africa

LONDON – Sweden on Thursday reported its first case of the more contagious variant of mpox outside of Africa, local media reported.

"The case is the first that has been diagnosed outside the African continent," Olivia Wigzell, acting director general of Sweden's Public Health Authority, was quoted as saying by the local broadcaster SVT Nyheter.

Wigzell said the affected person sought treatment in the Stockholm area, and has been confirmed to be infected with the more contagious variant of the mpox virus known as clade 1.

According to the Public Health Authority, the person was affected during a stay in an area in Africa where there is a major outbreak of the virus.

The variant of mpox that is now spreading in the Democratic Republic of Congo and elsewhere on the continent is believed to be both more contagious and more deadly than the "clade 2" variant, which was responsible for the global outbreak that began in 2022.

"I would say that the risk is relatively high that we get single cases in Sweden, people who have been and traveled in the areas and got an infection and come home with it," Magnus Gisslen, state epidemiologist, told SVT on Thursday.

There is an antiviral drug that can be used to treat the most serious cases of mpox, otherwise "there is no other treatment, but you have to treat the symptoms", according to Gisslen.

However, he believes that there is good preparedness to detect the virus in health care and limit the spread of infection.

"At the same time, of course, it is something that we must take seriously and it may be that it gets a certain spread here," he said.

"It is important that we find the cases that come, if there are any, so that we can handle them in the right way so that we don't get any spread," the epidemiologist said. (PNA)