Health officials in Pakistan have reported that the strain of mpox (formerly known as monkeypox) circulating in the country differs genetically from the strain found in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Pakistani health officials announced on Monday that the mpox virus case found there last week is not the same strain that is circulating in Africa.
According to medical experts, the instance in Pakistan falls within Clade 2b, according to a statement from the country's health ministry.
"Currently, the ongoing outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is primarily associated with Clade 1b. Notably, as of now, there have been no reported cases of Clade 1b in Pakistan," the statement said.
However, according to Swedish officials, a person's Clade 1b subclade was discovered last week, making them the first case connected to the African outbreak to be diagnosed outside of Africa.
The increase in mpox cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and other African nations was deemed a public health emergency of worldwide concern last week by Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director-general of the World Health Organisation.
"The emergence of a new clade of mpox, its rapid spread in eastern DRC, and the reporting of cases in several neighboring countries are very worrying,” Tedros said.
He added, “On top of outbreaks of other mpox clades in DRC and other countries in Africa, it’s clear that a coordinated international response is needed to stop these outbreaks and save lives.”
To note, a virus known as mpox, or monkeypox, is endemic in many African nations. Since the year's commencement, around 18,737 suspected or confirmed cases of mpox have been reported in 13 different African nations, accounting for over 500 fatalities.
