Public health nurses are preparing to deal with a new strain of mpox, which health officials confirm has been detected in England for the first time.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) announced this week that an individual in London had tested positive for clade Ib mpox, which is a more severe strain of the virus.
“The safety of both staff and service users remains our priority”
Jodie Crossman
However, it said the risk to the UK remains low.
The UKHSA said an individual tested positive for clade Ib mpox – formerly known as monkeypox – after travelling from one of the countries in Africa affected by the outbreak.
The individual has been transferred to the Royal Free Hospital’s high-consequence infectious diseases unit.
This is the first detection of this strain of mpox in the UK and is different from mpox clade II that has been circulating at low levels since 2022, primarily among gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men.
Existing evidence suggests that clade Ib mpox causes more severe disease and the UKHSA said it would continue to monitor the strain to learn more about its severity, as well as transmission and control measures.
It comes the World Health Organization declared earlier this year that the surge in mpox cases in parts of Africa constituted a public health emergency of international concern.
Jodie Crossman, a clinical nurse specialist and national nurse spokesperson for the British Association for Sexual Health and HIV (BASHH), told Nursing Times that clade Ib “is thought to be slightly more transmissible and can be passed on by close contact as well as sexual contact”.
She added: “Most cases of clade Ib are self-limiting and resolve within two-four weeks.
“However, as this strain is currently classified as a high-consequence infectious disease, individuals testing positive will need to be cared for in hospital infectious disease units.”
Ms Crossman said BASHH would continue to maintain close communications with its members, including sexual health nurses, and would provide updates as new information emerges.
Jodie Crossman
She added: “We are putting into practice our learnings from the emergence of clade II in 2022 and are collaborating with the UKHSA and other sector partners to ensure the preparedness of sexual health services.
“The safety of both staff and service users remains our priority, and we will continue to coordinate our approach to detect, contain and treat mpox, responding swiftly to any further developments.”
This was echoed by the UKHSA, which said extensive planning was underway to ensure healthcare professionals were equipped and prepared to respond to any confirmed cases.
Professor Susan Hopkins, chief medical adviser at UKHSA, said: “It is thanks to our surveillance that we have been able to detect this virus.
“This is the first time we have detected this clade of mpox in the UK, though other cases have been confirmed abroad.”
Professor Hopkins confirmed that the UKHSA was “working rapidly to trace close contacts and reduce the risk of any potential spread”.
She added: “In accordance with established protocols, investigations are underway to learn how the individual acquired the infection and to assess whether there are any further associated cases.”
Clade Ib mpox has been widely circulating in the Democratic Republic of Congo in recent months and there have been cases reported in Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, Sweden, India and Germany.
Mpox can be passed on through close person-to-person contact with someone who has the infection or with infected animals and through contact with contaminated materials.
Common symptoms include a skin rash or pus-filled lesions which can last two to four weeks.
It can also cause fever, headaches, muscle aches, back pain, low energy and swollen lymph nodes.
The UK has an existing stock of vaccines for mpox and last month announced that a further 150,000 doses of the vaccine were being procured to support a routine immunisation programme.
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