German authorities announced on Monday the detection of four cases of the new Clade 1b variant of the mpox virus, including two infections in school-aged children, in a community near Cologne. The first case was linked to a family member’s recent trip to Africa, with subsequent testing confirming the virus in three other family members, according to a press release from the local authorities. The affected family is now under quarantine, reported Xinhua.
As a precautionary measure, classrooms at the school attended by the infected children have been closed, and students will transition to remote learning until Friday.
"The pupils of a special school in Rösrath will be taught via distance learning from now until Friday inclusive," a statement said, after talks with Germany's disease control and prevention agency, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI).
"After intensive discussions with the RKI and other specialist institutions, the health department and the school management have decided to take this preventive measure with a view to protecting the student body in particular."
Germany reported its first case of the Clade 1b variant in October. No mpox-related deaths have been recorded in the country so far.
Mpox, caused by an orthopoxvirus, has historically been prevalent in West and Central Africa. The first case of the Clade 1b variant outside Africa was reported in Sweden in mid-August.
Symptoms of mpox include fever, swollen lymph nodes, sore throat, muscle aches, skin rash, and back pain.
In August, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared mpox a public health emergency of international concern, reactivating its highest level of global alert for the second time in two years.
Clade 1b began spreading last year in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and has since been found in dozens of African countries as well as in Sweden, Thailand, India, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
