Netherlands reports first case of new MPOX strain

The Netherlands has recorded its first case of the new variant of the infectious disease mpox, confirmed late last week. The patient was unvaccinated and had not recently traveled abroad but had engaged in sexual contact with other men, caretaker Health Minister Jan Anthonie Bruijn said in a letter to Parliament on Tuesday.

The patient has been placed in isolation, and the risk of wider transmission appears low, Bruijn said. The public health service (GGD) is tracing the source of the infection and the man’s recent contacts. Men who have sex with men remain the main high-risk group for mpox, known recently as the monkeypox virus.

The same mpox variant (1b) detected in the Netherlands has also been recently identified in Spain and the United States. The first infections with the new variant emerged last year in several countries. Minister Bruijn said that the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) are keeping a close watch on the situation.

High-risk groups will continue to have access to mpox vaccination at least until the end of this year. The Cabinet will make a decision on a possible extension by January.

While it is not a sexually transmitted infection, the virus spreads mainly through skin-to-skin contact and can infect anyone. The disease is rarely fatal in Western countries, but complications can arise.

Mpox can cause fever, headaches, muscle pain, and general discomfort. Within a few days, blisters appear on the skin.

A global mpox outbreak occurred in 2022, primarily in Africa, which was caused by variant 2b. Since then, over 1,300 people in the Netherlands have been infected with this variant.