Sweden has reported the first case outside Africa of the more dangerous variant of monkeypox, which the WHO has declared a global public health emergency.
The country's public health agency confirmed to AFP that it is the same strain of the virus that has been rampant in the Democratic Republic of Congo since September 2023, known as subclade Clade 1b.
"A person who sought help" in Stockholm "was diagnosed with mpox caused by this variant". This is the first case to be diagnosed outside the African continent," the agency said in a statement.
The man became infected during a visit to "a part of Africa where there is a large outbreak of Clade I," state epidemiologist Magnus Gislen said in the statement.
The World Health Organization said more cases are likely to be confirmed in Europe soon.
"The confirmation of monkeypox Clade 1 in Sweden is a clear reflection of the interconnectedness of our world ... there are likely to be more imported cases of Clade 1 in the European region in the coming days and weeks," WHO's European regional office said in a statement.
The patient "has received care," Gislain said. The agency added that Sweden "has prepared to safely diagnose, isolate and treat people with monkeypox."
"The fact that a monkeypox patient has been treated in the country does not affect the risk to the general population - a risk that the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) currently considers to be very low," the release said.
The outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has claimed 548 lives since the beginning of the year.
WHO has declared the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighbouring countries a public health emergency of international concern.
Previously called monkeypox, the virus was first detected in humans in 1970 in what is now the DRC.
It is an infectious disease caused by a virus that is transmitted to humans from infected animals, but can also be transmitted from person to person in close physical contact.
The disease causes fever, muscle aches and large boils on the skin. | BGNES
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