New deadly mpox variant is ‘very likely’ in the UK, expert warns – after WHO declared global emergency over outbreak

AN INFECTIOUS disease expert has warned of a new deadlier variant of mpox “very likely” already in the UK.

The Clade 1b strain of mpox, previously referred to as monkeypox, is a more severe with a higher mortality rate, experts said.

1

Cases of the new variant have already been confirmed in Sweden and Pakistan.

They were first detected in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

In response the World Health Organisation this week declared a global health emergency, which is its highest alert.

The warning was triggered after an outbreak in Africa where the highly contagious disease has already killed at least 500 people and infected 13,700 during an initial outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Professor Paul Hunter told Sky News it is “very likely” there are already cases in the UK, however it has not been confirmed.

He said: “When someone gets an infection it typically takes several days before they develop the classic appearance that would make people think ‘oh, this is mpox’.

“Then it can take longer before the samples are taken and sent to the lab, it’s identified as mpox and sent for sequencing so we know which clade of mpox it is.”

And he said “only time will tell” if the UK will see the same levels of mortality being seen in Africa.

The infectious disease expert explained the condition is “relatively mild” for most people and infection risk is “very low”.

It comes after Sweden’s public health agency revealed that a person became infected during a stay in an area within Africa, with the continent battling a major outbreak of mpox Clade I.

The WHO declared mutant mpox a global health emergency after its rapid spread to at least 13 countries.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the potential for further spread within Africa and beyond “is very worrying”.

“A co-ordinated international response is essential to stop this outbreak and save lives,” he said.

Mpox is transmitted through close contact, such as sex, skin-to-skin contact and talking or breathing close to another person.

There are two main types of mpox – clade 1 and clade 2.

A previous mpox public health emergency, declared in 2022, was caused by the relatively mild clade 2.

That outbreak was brought under control by vaccinating vulnerable groups.

However, this time it is the far more deadly clade 1 variant that is surging.

It has a fatality rate of around five per cent in adults and 10 per cent in children, compared to three per cent for its predecessor.

In April, alarm bells were raised when scientists found a new easier-to-catch strain of mpox called clade 1b which had “pandemic potential” in Kamituga, a small mining town in the DRC.

Doctor Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, from the WHO, warned: “In the past month, about 90 cases of clade 1b have been reported in four countries neighbouring the DRC that have not reported mpox before: Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda.

“But we are not dealing with one outbreak of one clade – we are dealing with several outbreaks of different clades in different countries with different modes of transmission and different levels of risk.”

WHO’S labelling of a “public health emergency of international concern” is meant to encourage member countries to begin preparing for the virus.

This could entail the sharing of vaccines and treatments with poorer nations.

Dr Josie Golding, from the Wellcome Trust, said it was a “strong signal”, while Emory University’s Dr Boghuma Titanji said the move “underscores the gravity of the crisis”.

Monkeypox is a viral infection that causes flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions.

Until a few years ago most cases of it were reported in central and west Africa.

Like clade 2, most new infections in the DRC appear to have been sexually transmitted.

But there have also been cases of the new bug spreading through touch alone in schools and workplaces.