Scientists call for for calm over Mpox

Leading experts have questioned official warnings about the threat of a new type of Mpox virus said to be more lethal than other strains.

The UK public health watchdog has issued a new warning about the dangers of the Mpox, urging health workers to be alert for cases. Last month the World Health Organization (WHO) declared outbreaks of the contagious virus in west and central Africa constitute a ‘global health emergency’ because its threshold of at least 5,000 suspected cases were identified. Mpox, formerly known as Monkeypox, received global attention when the clade 2 strain of the virus spread internationally, reaching over 100 countries in 2022.

Now, a new version, known as clade Ib, has the world’s attention again and, in echoes of the covid pandemic, has led some scientists to call for the introduction of covid-style control measures such as mask wearing in “community settings.”

However many experts say such measures are unnecessary.

They also believe the risks are being overblown and that deaths from the Mpox virus are rare in healthy people. Robert Dingwall, a professor of social sciences at Nottingham Trent University and an expert on infectious disease said:

“Mpox is clearly unpleasant, but not a particular threat and even in vulnerable populations it is not leading to high death rates. People who catch it generally get better without significant long term consequences. In developing countries you may get outbreaks but deaths are often linked to very vulnerable groups who are in poverty, warfare or stress.”

 A leading disease geneticist who asked not to be named said:

“Mpox has been around for aeons and has not created a global pandemic before so there is no reason to think it is the kind of pathogen that will cause a major global problem now.”

He added: “This is not a respiratory pathogen, so masks make no sense.”

Professor Paul Hunter, a world leading infectious disease expert at the University of East Anglia, said:

“Mpox is an issue for Africa, it has the potential to be a global emergency but it probably won’t. Specialists in this field don’t have a great deal of anxiety about this clade of the virus and it appears the concerns that this new clade would be a lethal issue are not well founded.”

The WHO’s announcement of  a Public Health Emergency of International Concern allows it to fast-track vaccines through its Emergency Use Listing program, bypassing the normal rigour required to approve such pharmaceuticals.

Danish drugmaker Bavarian Nordic says it is ready to produce up to 10 million doses of its vaccine targeting Mpox by 2025.