New Mpox strain poses notable risk for children, warn experts

The new and deadlier Mpox strain Clade 1b poses a notable risk to children said experts on Thursday amid an outbreak of the infectious disease in AfricaThe ongoing outbreak of Mpox which has been declared as a global health emergency by the World Health Organization WHO on August 15 is different from what the world experienced earlier in the 2022 outbreakThe 2022 outbreak was driven by Clade II which is less virulent and the infections were primarily seen in men who had sex with other menSince then the WHO has reported 99176 cases and 208 deaths due to Mpox from 116 countries India detected a total of 30 cases with the last case in March 2024The number of cases and deaths has increased significantly this year with over 15600 cases and 537 deaths reported so far in 2024The latest outbreak is majorly caused by Clade Ib which jumped to humans from animals in September 2023Dr Rajeev Jayadevan cochairman of the Indian Medical Associationrsquos National Covid19 Task Force told IANS that the pattern of spread and mortality are markedly different from what we experienced in 2022This time ldquogreater numbers of people are being infected including women and childrenrdquo he saidTraditionally Mpox was transmitted through close physical contact or sexual contact as was observed in the 2022 outbreak and the infection was largely confined to the MSM men having sex with men communityHistorical data shows that while paediatric cases were rare in past outbreaks the current resurgence has highlighted a growing vulnerability in this age groupldquoMpox is posing a notable risk to children though they represent a smaller proportion of cases compared to adultsrdquo Dr Rohit Garg Consultant Infectious Disease Amrita Hospital Faridabad told IANSldquoRecent data indicates an increase in paediatric cases during the current resurgence with children showing symptoms similar to those in adults but potentially facing more severe outcomesrdquo he addedAs per WHO data 20222024 as of July 2024 there were 1156 13 per cent cases reported aged 017 out of which 333 04 per cent were aged 04ldquoObserved changes include higher transmission rates in households and schools emphasising the need for vigilant monitoring and preventive measuresrdquo Garg saidThis suggests that we need to keep an open mind about the possible modes of transmission Jayadevan said amid debate on whether transmission can occur through the airldquoThe fact that children are readily getting infected suggests that either close contact or respiratory or both modes of transition could potentially be involved This requires validation howeverrdquo he saidAlso Read Mpox Mumbai doctors highlight why the viral disease is deadlyThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever