The Robert Koch Institute for Public Health said on Tuesday that Germany had recorded the first case of a new mutant strain of monkeypox, and that it believed that the risk of its wider spread was low.
The institute added in a statement that the infection caused by the new mutant – which came from outside Germany – was discovered on October 18, indicating that it was transmitted through close physical contact.
“The Robert Koch Institute currently considers that the risk to the health of the general population in Germany is low,” he said, adding that he was closely monitoring the situation and would adjust his assessment if necessary.
Last August, the World Health Organization declared the monkeypox virus a global public health emergency for the second time in two years after the outbreak of the viral infection in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and its spread to neighboring countries.
The spread of monkeypox outside the African continent was first observed on August 15, when global health officials confirmed infection with a new strain of the virus in Sweden.
Monkeypox – now known as “Empox” – is a viral disease that spreads from animals to humans, but is also transmitted between humans, and causes fever, muscle pain, and skin lesions.
Regions in Africa are witnessing cases of monkeypox, with the highest infection numbers recorded in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi, and Nigeria.
Two simultaneous epidemics are occurring, one affecting mainly children, and the other caused by the new “1B” variant, infecting adults in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and neighboring countries.
The African Union health agency said last week that a total of 42,000 cases of “Imbox” have been recorded in Africa since January, and about 1,100 people have died as a result of this virus.
She warned that the epidemic was on its way to becoming “out of control” if the necessary measures were not taken to contain it.
Elsewhere in Europe, cases have been reported in Sweden, and other cases have been recorded in many Asian countries.
A vaccination campaign was launched at the beginning of this October in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in Central Africa, which is the country most affected by the virus in the world.