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Thailand Reports First Asian Case of New Mpox Strain Clade 1b
Thailand has confirmed its first case of a new and potentially more dangerous strain of Mpox, known as Clade 1b, marking the first instance of this strain in Asia and only the second outside Africa. The infected individual is a 66-year-old European man who arrived in Bangkok from an undisclosed African country on 14 August. He began exhibiting symptoms the following day and sought medical attention, where it was confirmed that he had contracted Mpox, specifically the Clade 1b strain.
This strain has been at the center of a deadly outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), responsible for at least 450 deaths since the outbreak began last year. The virus has since spread to neighboring countries such as Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, and Uganda, which had not previously reported cases of Mpox.
Last week, Sweden became the first country outside of Africa to confirm a case of Clade 1b. The Swedish patient had also recently traveled to an unnamed African country, similar to the case in Thailand.