New case of Clade Ib mpox detected in England
A new case of the Clade Ib strain of mpox has been detected in England, the UK Health Security Agency has said.
It was detected in East Sussex and the individual is now under the specialist care of Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust.
The patient had recently returned from Uganda, where there is currently community transmission of Clade Ib mpox, also known as monkeypox.
A boy suspected of having mpox is tested in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. File pic: Reuters
It is the sixth case of the strain confirmed in England since October 2024 but the latest infection has no links to the previous cases identified in England.
UKHSA Deputy Director, Dr Meera Chand, said the risk to the UK population “remains low”.
The agency said on Monday it was checking the infected individual’s close contacts, with the help of partner organisations.
Contacts will be offered testing and vaccination where needed to prevent the infection from spreading, the UKHSA said, and they will be told what, if any, further care is needed if they have symptoms or test positive.
Clade Ib mpox has been found in several countries in Africa in recent months and imported cases have been detected in several countries including Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Sweden and the US.
A man with blisters on his hands from mpox. File pic: iStock
“Extensive planning” has been carried out so healthcare professionals are equipped and ready to respond to any further confirmed cases, the agency said.
The Clade Ib variant is a new form of the virus, which was declared a global health emergency by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in August.
Mpox, including the Clade 1b strain, is usually passed on by close physical contact, contact with infected animals or sexual transmission.
A skin rash or pus-filled lesions, which can last between two to four weeks, are common symptoms of mpox, which can also cause fever, headaches, muscle aches, back pain, low energy and swollen lymph nodes.
However, in some people the illness can be severe or lead to complications and even death, the WHO has warned.
Newborn babies, children, people who are pregnant, and people with underlying immune deficiencies, such as from advanced HIV, may be at higher risk of more serious mpox disease and death, the organisation said.
The Clade 1b strain of mpox was discovered last year and traced to a mining town in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Read more:
How is new mpox strain different to others?
First Clade lb case found in London
Germany discovers first case of new mpox variant
Scientists from the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) declared a public health emergency over the new strain in August.
Between January 2022 and November 2024, 263 lab-confirmed mpox deaths were recorded by the WHO across 82 countries, which between them have seen more than 117,000 cases.
Almost 17,500 cases have been detected across 25 African countries, mostly in DRC, where 9,513 have been detected since the start of last year and 87 people have died.
UK
Teenager living in ‘continuous pain’ after surgeon Dr Yaser Jabbar carried out ‘inappropriate’ operations
A 15-year-old boy who was operated on twice by a now unlicensed Great Ormond Street surgeon is living with “continuous” pain.
Finias Sandu has been told by an independent review the procedures he underwent on both his legs were “unacceptable” and “inappropriate” for his age.
The teenager from Essex was born with a condition that causes curved bones in his legs.
Aged seven, a reconstructive procedure was carried out on Finias’s left leg, lengthening the limb by 3.5cm.
A few years later, the same operation was carried out on his right leg which involved wearing an invasive and heavy metal frame for months.
He has now been told by independent experts these procedures should not have taken place and concerns have been raised over a lack of imaging being taken prior to the operations.
Yaser Jabbar rescinded his UK medical licence last year. Pic: LinkedIn
His doctor at London’s prestigious Great Ormond Street Hospital was former consultant orthopaedic surgeon Yaser Jabbar. Sky News has spoken to others he treated.
Mr Jabbar also did not arrange for updated scans or for relevant X-rays to be conducted ahead of the procedures.
The surgeries have been found to have caused Finias “harm” and left him in constant pain.
“The pain is there every day, every day I’m continuously in pain,” he told Sky News.
“It’s not something really sharp, although it does get to a certain point where it hurts quite a lot, but it’s always there. It just doesn’t leave, it’s a companion to me, just always there.”
Read more:
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Finias’s surgery pictures
Care of over 700 patients being assessed
Mr Jabbar rescinded his UK medical licence in January last year after working at Great Ormond Street between 2017 and 2022.
The care of his 700-plus patients is being assessed, with some facing corrective surgery, among them Finias.
“Trusting somebody is hard to do, knowing what they have done to me physically and emotionally, you know, it’s just too much to comprehend for me,” he said.
“It wasn’t something just physically, like my leg pain and everything else. It was emotionally, because I put my trust in that specific doctor. My parents and I don’t really understand the more scientific terms, we just went by what he said.”
Doctors refused to treat Finias because of his surgeries
Finias and his family relocated to their native Romania soon after the reconstructive frame was removed from his right leg in the summer of 2021.
The pain worsened and they sought advice from doctors in Romania, who refused to treat Finias because of the impact of his surgeries.
Dozens of families seeking legal claims
His mother Cornelia Sandu is “furious” and feels her trust in the hospital has been shattered. They are now among dozens of families seeking legal claims.
Cyrus Plaza from Hudgell Solicitors is representing the family. He said: “In cases where it has been identified that harm was caused, we want to see Great Ormond Street Hospital agreeing to pay interim payments of compensation for the children, so that if they need therapy or treatment now, they can access it.”
Finias is accessing therapy and mental health support as he prepares for corrective surgery later in the year.
A spokesperson for Great Ormond Street Hospital told Sky News: “We are deeply sorry to Finias and his family, and all the patients and families who have been impacted.
“We want every patient and family who comes to our hospital to feel safe and cared for. We will always discuss concerns families may have and, where they submit claims, we will work to ensure the legal process can be resolved as quickly as possible.”
Finias with his mother and sister
Service not ‘safe for patients’
Sky News has attempted to contact Mr Jabbar.
An external review into the wider orthopaedic department at the hospital began in September 2022.
It was commissioned after the Royal College of Surgeons warned the hospital’s lower limb reconstruction service was not “safe for patients or adequate to meet demand”.
The investigation is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
Sir Keir Starmer has said closer ties with the EU will be good for the UK’s jobs, bills and borders ahead of a summit where he could announce a deal with the bloc.
The government is set to host EU leaders in London on Monday as part of its efforts to “reset” relations post-Brexit.
A deal granting the UK access to a major EU defence fund could be on the table, according to reports – but disagreements over a youth mobility scheme and fishing rights could prove to be a stumbling block.
The prime minister has appeared to signal a youth mobility deal could be possible, telling The Times that while freedom of movement is a “red line”, youth mobility does not come under this.
His comment comes after Kaja Kallas, the EU’s high representative for foreign affairs, said on Friday work on a defence deal was progressing but “we’re not there yet”.
Sir Keir met European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen later that day while at a summit in Albania.
Ursula von der Leyen and Sir Keir had a brief meeting earlier this week. Pic: PA
If agreed, the deal will be the third in two weeks, following trade agreements with India and the US.
Sir Keir said: “First India, then the United States – in the last two weeks alone that’s jobs saved, faster growth and wages rising.
“More money in the pockets of British working people, achieved through striking deals not striking poses.
“Tomorrow, we take another step forward, with yet more benefits for the United Kingdom as the result of a strengthened partnership with the European Union.”
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Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has said she is “worried” about what the PM might have negotiated.
Ms Badenoch – who has promised to rip up the deal with the EU if it breaches her red lines on Brexit – said: “Labour should have used this review of our EU trade deal to secure new wins for Britain, such as an EU-wide agreement on Brits using e-gates on the continent.
“Instead, it sounds like we’re giving away our fishing quotas, becoming a rule-taker from Brussels once again and getting free movement by the back door. This isn’t a reset, it’s a surrender.”
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