THE HAGUE: The Netherlands has confirmed its first case of a new, more transmissible variant of mpox, Minister for Health, Welfare and Sport Jan Anthonie Bruijn said in a letter to parliament.
The infection, identified on October 17, is the first time the mpox variant 1b has been detected in the country.
"This is the first time that this new mpox-variant has been identified in the Netherlands, " the minister said in the letter. He added that the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) are "closely monitoring the situation."