Thailand detects first suspected case of dangerous mpox strain in European traveller

Thailand has reported a suspected first case of a new, more dangerous strain of mpox in a European traveller.

The patient, a 66-year-old man who arrived from an unnamed African country on 14 August, is believed to be infected by the Clade 1 variant, which is deadlier and more transmissible and triggered a warning from the world health authority last week.

The man had minimal contact with other people after he arrived in Thailand and sought medical attention the following day, authorities said.

“After he arrives from the flight there is very little timeframe where he comes into contact with others,” Thongchai Keeratihattayakorn, head of the Department of Disease Control, told Reuters .

“He arrived around 6pm and on the next day, 15 August, he went to see the doctor at the hospital.”

Authorities are monitoring 43 individuals who may have been in contact with the patient.

“We have done a test and they definitely have mpox and it’s definitely not Clade 2,” Mr Thongchai was quoted as saying by AFP.

“We are convinced the person has the Clade 1 variant, but we have to wait to see the final result in the lab for two more days.”

Thailand previously detected 800 cases of the Clade 2 variant but not any of Clade 1 or Clade 1b.

Meanwhile, the European traveller has been quarantined, and lab tests are ongoing to confirm the strain.

There are two distinct clades or natural groups of the mpox virus: Clade 1 and Clade 2.

Clade 2 was responsible for the global outbreak which started in 2022. Clade 1 is considered more severe and is classified as a high consequence infectious disease.

The WHO has declared a public health emergency due to a new mpox outbreak in several African nations, with at least three cases now reported outside the continent.

More than 17,000 cases and 571 deaths have been confirmed in Africa so far this year.

In Thailand, authorities have mandated that all international airport disease control checkpoints and ports, particularly at Don Muang and Suvarnabhumi airports and Laem Chabang port, screen passengers arriving from Africa, the Bangkok Post reported.