BangkokThailand confirmed Asia’s first case of a new, more dangerous strain of MPOX on Thursday, officials said.
The patient, a 66-year-old European, tested positive for this new strain after arriving in Bangkok on August 14.
Before arriving in Thailand, the patient had travelled from Africa to the UK. The Department of Disease Control said laboratory tests identified the infection as mpox clade 1b.
“The Department of Disease Control of Thailand would like to confirm the laboratory test result showing mpox Clade 1b in a European patient,” the department said in an official statement.
“We have monitored 43 people who have been in close contact with the patient and so far they have not presented symptoms, but we must continue to follow up for a total of 21 days,” the department added.
So far, no case of M. smallpox has been reported in India, but as a precautionary measure, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences has issued an advisory protocol for the management of suspected cases.
The new strain, with a 3% fatality rate, has spread across several African countries and has reportedly killed more than 500 people in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Children and adolescents are also falling ill, with known fatal cases exceeding 60% among patients under 5 years old.
Singapore issues Mpox alert
The Singapore government is on alert and closely monitoring any potential cases of mpox in the country by screening arriving passengers for possible symptoms.
The Ministry of Health (MOH), Ministry of Transport and Immigration and the Checkpoints Authority said they will enhance Singapore’s surveillance capabilities against infectious diseases at the borders.
Temperature and visual screening will be carried out at Changi and Seletar airports from Friday as a precaution against MPOX, after a confirmed case of a potentially more severe variant was reported in Sweden and Thailand.
Fears surrounding mpox continue to rise amid a surge in cases in several countries, including Africa, Thailand and Sweden.
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