TY - JOUR
T1 - Mpox outbreak among men who have sex with men in Amsterdam and Rotterdam, the Netherlands
T2 - no evidence for undetected transmission prior to May 2022, a retrospective study
AU - de Vries, Henry J.
AU - Götz, Hannelore M.
AU - Bruisten, Sylvia
AU - van der Eijk, Annemiek A.
AU - Prins, Maria
AU - Oude Munnink, Bas B.
AU - Welkers, Matthijs Ra
AU - Jonges, Marcel
AU - Molenkamp, Richard
AU - Westerhuis, Brenda M.
AU - Schuele, Leonard
AU - Stam, Arjen
AU - Boter, Marjan
AU - Hoornenborg, Elske
AU - Mulders, Daphne
AU - van den Lubben, Mariken
AU - Koopmans, Marion
N1 - Funding Information: This work was published as a preprint article on MedRxiv (de Vries HJ, Götz HM, Bruisten S, van der Eijk AA, Prins M, Oude Munnink BB, et al. Human Monkeypox Virus outbreak among Men who have Sex with Men in Amsterdam and Rotterdam, the Netherlands: no evidence for undetected transmission prior to May 2022 in a retrospective study. medRxiv 2022.11.19.22282179). Publisher Copyright: This article is copyright of the authors or their affiliated institutions, 2023.
PY - 2023/4/17
Y1 - 2023/4/17
N2 - Since May 2022, over 21,000 mpox cases have been reported from 29 EU/EEA countries, predominantly among men who have sex with men (MSM). The Netherlands was the fourth most affected country in Europe, with more than 1,200 cases and a crude notification rate of 70.7 per million population. The first national case was reported on 10 May, yet potential prior transmission remains unknown. Insight into prolonged undetected transmission can help to understand the current outbreak dynamics and aid future public health interventions. We performed a retrospective study and phylogenetic analysis to elucidate whether undetected transmission of human mpox virus (hMPXV) occurred before the first reported cases in Amsterdam and Rotterdam. In 401 anorectal and ulcer samples from visitors to centres for sexual health in Amsterdam or Rotterdam dating back to 14 February 2022, we identified two new cases, the earliest from 6 May. This coincides with the first cases reported in the United Kingdom, Spain and Portugal. We found no evidence of widespread hMPXV transmission in Dutch sexual networks of MSM before May 2022. Likely, the mpox outbreak expanded across Europe within a short period in the spring of 2022 through an international highly intertwined network of sexually active MSM.
AB - Since May 2022, over 21,000 mpox cases have been reported from 29 EU/EEA countries, predominantly among men who have sex with men (MSM). The Netherlands was the fourth most affected country in Europe, with more than 1,200 cases and a crude notification rate of 70.7 per million population. The first national case was reported on 10 May, yet potential prior transmission remains unknown. Insight into prolonged undetected transmission can help to understand the current outbreak dynamics and aid future public health interventions. We performed a retrospective study and phylogenetic analysis to elucidate whether undetected transmission of human mpox virus (hMPXV) occurred before the first reported cases in Amsterdam and Rotterdam. In 401 anorectal and ulcer samples from visitors to centres for sexual health in Amsterdam or Rotterdam dating back to 14 February 2022, we identified two new cases, the earliest from 6 May. This coincides with the first cases reported in the United Kingdom, Spain and Portugal. We found no evidence of widespread hMPXV transmission in Dutch sexual networks of MSM before May 2022. Likely, the mpox outbreak expanded across Europe within a short period in the spring of 2022 through an international highly intertwined network of sexually active MSM.
KW - epidemics
KW - homosexuality, male
KW - mpox virus
KW - sexually transmitted diseases
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85159242655&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - https://doi.org/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2023.28.17.2200869
DO - https://doi.org/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2023.28.17.2200869
M3 - Article
C2 - 37103788
SN - 1025-496X
VL - 28
JO - Euro surveillance
JF - Euro surveillance
IS - 17
ER -