Mpox detected in Brittany: “No need to worry”, assures the Minister of Health

A new minister who procrastinates. Traveling to Rennes this Tuesday, January 7, Yannick Neuder, in charge of Health in the Bayrou government, returned to this information, confirmed the day before by his services: at the beginning of January, a case of a new variant of mpox, a disease formerly known as the name monkeypox, was detected in Brittany. A first in France. Hospitalized at the Rennes University Hospital, the patient does not present a “serious state”, indicates the minister.

“All appropriate measures have been taken,” assures Yannick Neuder, citing the isolation of the contaminated person, the implementation of barrier gestures and the identification of possible contact cases. “This variant, clade 1b, is already common in Europe since there have already been this type of case in Sweden, Germany, the United Kingdom and Belgium. Knowing that in clade 2 (another variant of the virus, considered less dangerous, editor’s note), there are around 200 cases in mainland France. This naturally leads to vigilance and caution, but there is no need to worry. »

“A clear strategy” to stem a “benign” pathology

An epidemic of mpox is raging in Central Africa, particularly in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It is also from this country that the two people who could have transmitted the virus to the patient returned. But, according to the minister, the health risk is under control in France. “There is no reason to believe that there would be other sporadic cases. In any case, none has been brought to our attention. And if there is, a very clear strategy is established in conjunction with the WHO, Europe and Public Health France (…). »

Yannick Neuder also indicates that, in most cases, mpox is a disease that “resolves spontaneously in 15 days or 3 weeks”. It manifests itself as skin lesions on the palms or genital area, sometimes accompanied by fever, with an incubation period around two weeks. “We know this pathology, it is benign but it can pose some problems if the patients are fragile. » In this case, a vaccine may be offered.