Germany has reported its first case of the new mpox variant, clade 1b, according to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the country’s health authority. The infection, which occurred abroad, was detected last Friday. While the RKI does not anticipate an increased risk for Germany, it is monitoring the situation closely.
Mpox, a viral disease related to smallpox, is characterized by fever, body aches, swollen lymph nodes, and a rash that develops into blisters. The disease has two main subtypes: clade 1 and clade 2. Since May 2022, clade 2 spread across Europe and the United States, predominantly affecting gay and bisexual men. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared a public health emergency in July 2022 due to the global outbreak, but the emergency was lifted in May 2023 after vaccinations and awareness campaigns successfully curbed the spread. By then, 87,400 cases had been reported worldwide, resulting in 140 deaths.
This year, a new outbreak has emerged in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where clade 1, which primarily affects children, and a newly identified variant, clade 1b, are circulating. Cases of clade 1b have also been recorded in nearby Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, and Uganda, where mpox had not previously been detected. The WHO declared another international emergency in August 2024 to address the rising cases in Africa.
