Case series of the first five human infections with monkeypox virus clade Ib and report on the public health response, United Kingdom, October to November 2024
Alvi MI., Kliner M., Welfare W., Gordon NC., Thomas S., Padfield S., Emmett HE., Heinsbroek E., Hughes GJ., Groves N., Gallagher E., Pullan S., Belfield A., Houlihan CF., Rampling T., O’Hara G., Tunbridge A., Dunning J., Whittaker E., Alonso A., Beadsworth M., Payne BAI., Chand M., Hopkins S., Armstrong G.
We report two importations of monkeypox virus clade Ib infection to the United Kingdom in 2024. The first was a traveller returning from Tanzania, Rwanda and Uganda, the second from Uganda. Both presented with fever and typical skin lesions; 147 contacts were followed up, 19 vaccinated with MVA-BN. Three household contacts of the first individual, including two children, became infected. These are the first reported autochthonous transmissions of clade Ib in Europe, and first paediatric cases outside the African continent.