General History of Mpox
Mpox was first identified in 1959 when monkeys shipped from Singapore to a Denmark research facility fell ill.
The first confirmed human case was in 1970 in the Democratic Republic of Congo, suspected to have smallpox. The virus was later isolated and identified as a distinct species. There are two main clades: Clade I (with subclades Ia and Ib) and Clade II (with subclades IIa and IIb).
Historical Outbreaks
- 2003: A shipment of animals from Ghana, imported to Texas, introduced mpox virus into the United States. Forty-seven confirmed and probable cases were reported from six states, with all infections linked to contact with pet prairie dogs infected with the virus.
- 2022-2023: A global outbreak caused by Clade IIb strain, with the first case detected in London, UK, in May 2022, and subsequent cases reported in many countries.
Renaming of the virus by WHO
In 2022, the World Health Organization (WHO) renamed the disease “mpox” to follow modern guidelines for the naming of illnesses. This was aiming to avoid cultural and social sensitivities.
General Info about MPOX
According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, from the beginning of monitoring in 2022 to the end of July 2024, there have been over 100,000 cases of Mpox due to the monkeypox virus (MPXV), Clade I and Clade II with over 200 of those resulting in deaths.
The most recent statistics from the World Health Organisation (WHO) show that these have occurred in more than 120 countries.
The new clade 1b strain is the most deadly, which is now a concern as broadcast by the WHO in August 2024.
The WHO Director-General declared the mpox outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) on August 19, 2024, speaking about the increase of cases in Africa and the potential for further global spread.
