KEY POINTS
- The current mpox outbreak in Victoria is the largest in more than two years.
- There have been 330 cases since April this year, with 27 people hospitalized.
- Nationwide, 1,119 cases have been reported to federal authorities.
Victoria is facing a record mpox outbreak, the state’s chief health officer has warned, and cases continue to rise in other Australian jurisdictions.
Professor Ben Cowie said in an alert on Friday that the outbreak in Victoria was the largest since Victoria recorded its first case in May 2022.
He said the state had recorded 330 cases of mpox since April 2024, with 27 people hospitalized.
The majority of cases involve men who have sex with men, but anyone can get mpox. Cowie said heterosexual transmission had been reported and there had been several cases in women.
There is; clade 1 and clade 2. Clade 1 generally causes more severe disease, while clade 2 is a less severe infection.
The Australian cases are a clade 2 variant.
It comes amid a mpox outbreak in NSW that the state’s chief medical officer, Dr Kerry Chant, called “very concerning”.
Chant said earlier this month the state was experiencing its largest outbreak since May last year, with 433 cases recorded since June and 26 people with serious symptoms hospitalized.
She said 46 percent of these cases were not vaccinated against mpox. Although vaccinated people could also become infected, symptoms tended to be milder and for a shorter period of time.
More than 1,119 cases were reported to federal authorities on Friday, three-quarters of which are located in Victoria and New South Wales (329 and 512, respectively).
In the six months to Thursday, hospitalizations were confirmed in Victoria (27) and New South Wales (28).
Tasmania is the only state not affected. There have been 85 cases in Queensland, 15 in the ACT, eight in South Australia, four in the Northern Territory and two in Western Australia.
What is mpox?
Mpox is a viral zoonotic disease and belongs to the same family as that responsible for smallpox.
Signs and symptoms may include a distinctive rash or lesions, swollen lymph nodes, headache or fever, muscle pain, joint pain, back pain, chills, and exhaustion.
The virus can be transmitted through intimate or prolonged physical contact, close contact with skin rashes, body fluids (including droplets from coughing or sneezing), and contaminated objects such as sheets and towels.
Symptoms usually disappear after two to four weeks for most people, but some may become seriously ill.
Who should get the mpox vaccine in Australia?
Eligible groups can be vaccinated for free with no Medicare card required.
Vaccination is recommended for men who have sex with men, sex workers, and healthcare and laboratory personnel at risk of exposure.
Those who have close physical contact with an infected person or who are immunocompromised are also considered at high risk.
Anyone at risk who plans to travel to a country with a significant outbreak should be vaccinated four to six weeks before travel.
The best time to receive the vaccine is before being exposed to mpox.
With the Australian Associated Press.
