A first. A person has been diagnosed in France as a carrier of the clade 1b subvariant of the mpox virus, considered more contagious and more dangerous, which is unprecedented, the health authorities announced this Monday, January 6, confirming information from Western France.
Mpox is a viral disease that is transmitted from animals to humans, but is also transmitted through close physical contact with a person infected with the virus. In 2022, the global epidemic, transmitted by clade 2, had spread to around a hundred countries where the disease was not endemic.
United Kingdom, Germany…
Currently, the clade 1b variant is experiencing a resurgence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo since September 2023. But other cases have been identified outside the continent. First in Sweden on August 15, then in Germany on October 22, but also in the United Kingdom on October 30. These were imported cases, infections that occurred outside the national territory.
This subvariant is considered at this stage to be more contagious and with a higher fatality rate. It appears to cause rashes all over the body, while previous strains were characterized by localized rashes and lesions on the mouth, face or genitals.
Faced with this epidemic, the French health authorities had updated their vaccination recommendations; recommend a booster dose to recipients (men who have sex with men, sex workers, trans people with multiple partners) who have already been vaccinated during the first epidemic.
Source: BFM TV
