The UKs health watchdog discovered another case of mutant mpox in London making it the fourth infection within one household (all cases are connected to recent African travel)
Professor Susan Hopkins from UKHSA states: “Mpox is very infectious in households with close contact and so it is not unexpected to see further cases within the same household; the overall risk to the UK population remains low“
The patient gets treatment at Guys and St Thomas NHS Trust — its worth noting that all infected people stay in isolation and dont need extra contact-tracing
This clade-1b variant which first showed up in Congo late last year is different from UKʼs 2022 mpox cases: its more dangerous and spreads faster between people. Since its emergence the strain has affected:
- Over 25k people worldwide
- Caused 1k+ deaths (mostly kids under 15)
- Spread to multiple African nations
- Reached European countries India and Thailand
The WHO made this their top-priority health issue earlier this year — similar to how they handled covid in its early days. The virus keeps spreading mainly through close contact but experts say theres no reason for public panic