Spread of mpox: UK guidance

On 14 August, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that the recent mpox outbreak is a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. The declaration was given at the recommendation of an International Health Regulations Emergency Committee, whose members looked at data both from WHO and affected countries. According to the Committee, there is a potential for mpox to spread further across countries in Africa and possibly outside the continent (WHO, 2024).

Mpox (previously known as monkeypox) is a viral illness caused by the monkeypox virus, a species of the genus Orthopoxvirus in the Poxviridae family, which includes variola, cowpox, vaccinia and other viruses. There are two separate types (clades) of the virus: clade 1 (with subclades 1a and 1b) and clade 2 (with subclades 2a and 2b). Mpox does not spread easily between people unless there is very close contact, and is transmitted through skin-to-skin contact, breathing in virus through the respiratory tract, or contact with mucous membranes (eyes, nose, mouth, genitals) (UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), 2018). The symptoms of mpox include a skin rash with blisters, spots or ulcers that can appear anywhere on the body; fever; headaches, backache, and muscle aches; joint pains; swollen glands; and shivering (chills) and exhaustion (UKHSA, 2024).