Sweden reports first case of highly-infectious mpox virus outside Africa amid outbreak there

Swedish health authorities announced the first case of the highly-infectious mpox just a day after the World Health Organization declared a global emergency for the outbreaks in Africa.

In this case, a person was infected during a stay in the part of Africa where there is a major outbreak of (the more infectious mpox formerly known as monkeypox),” the Public Health Agency of Sweden announced on Thursday.

Magnus Gisslen, a state epidemiologist with the Swedish health agency, said the person had been treated and given “rules of conduct.”

“The fact that a patient with mpox is treated in the country does not affect the risk to the general population,” Swedish officials said.

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Swedish state epidemiologist Magnus Gisslén speaks during a press conference Thursday regarding mpox, in Stockholm. (Fredrik Sandberg/TT News Agency via AP)

The announcement of an infected resident in the Scandinavian country comes just a day after WHO declared the mpox outbreak a global emergency.

The U.N. health agency said there have been more than 14,000 cases and 524 deaths this year, which already exceed last year’s figures.

So far, more than 96% of all cases and deaths are in Congo.

Mpox on a child in Nigeria. (Nigeria Centre for Disease Control via WHO)

What is mpox?

Mpox, also known as monkeypox, was first identified by scientists in 1958 when there were outbreaks of a “pox-like” disease in monkeys. Until recently, most human cases were seen in people in Central and West Africa who had close contact with infected animals.

In 2022, the virus was confirmed to spread via sex for the first time and triggered outbreaks in more than 70 countries that had not previously reported mpox.

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Mpox belongs to the same family of viruses as smallpox but causes milder symptoms like fever, chills and body aches. People with more serious cases can develop lesions on the face, hands, chest and genitals.

Earlier this year, scientists identified a highly contagious form of mpox, which can kill up to 10% of people.

Mpox is transmittable and highly-contagious. (Reuters/Dado Ruvic/Illustration)

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Scientists in Europe have maintained that although mpox is transmittable and highly-contagious, advanced healthcare in Sweden and other rich countries can stop the transmission before it becomes an epidemic. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.