Concomitant diagnosis of sexually transmitted infections and human monkeypox in patients attending a sexual health clinic in Milan, Italy

Clinical and Epidemiological Characteristics of the 2022 Mpox Outbreak in Spain (CEME-22 Study)

Background

We conducted a multicentric national study (SEIMC-CEME-22), to describe the clinical and epidemiological profile of the mpox outbreak in Spain, including the management of the disease.

Methods

This was a retrospective national observational study conducted by Sociedad Española de Enfermedades Infecciosas y Microbiología Clínica (SEIMC) and Foundation SEIMC-GESIDA. We included patients with a confirmed mpox diagnosis before 13 July 2022, and attended at the Spanish health network (the early phase of the outbreak). Epidemiological, clinical, and therapeutic data were collected.

Results

Of a total of 1472 patients from 52 centers included, 99% of them were cisgender men, mostly middle-aged, and 98.6% were residents in Spain. The main suspected route of transmission was sexual exposure, primarily among MSM. Occupational exposure was reported in 6 patients. Immunosuppression was present in 40% of patients, mainly due to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Only 6.5% of patients had been vaccinated against orthopoxvirus. Virus sequencing was performed in 147 patients (all B.1 lineage). Rash was the most frequent symptom (95.7%), followed by fever (48.2%), adenopathies (44.4%) myalgias (20.7%), proctitis (17%), and headache (14.7%). Simultaneously diagnosed sexually transmitted infections included syphilis (n = 129), gonococcal infection (n = 91), HIV (n = 67), chlamydia (n = 56), hepatitis B (n = 14), and hepatitis C (n = 11). No therapy was used in 479 patients (33%). Symptomatic therapies and antibiotics were used in 50% of cases. The most used therapy regimens were systemic corticoids (90 patients), tecovirimat (6 patients), and cidofovir (13 patients). Smallpox immunoglobulins were used in 1 patient. Fifty-eight patients were hospitalized, and 1 patient died.

Conclusions

Mpox outbreak in Spain affected primarily middle-aged men who were sexually active and showed a high rate of HIV infection. A range of heterogeneous therapeutics options was performed.

A global systematic evidence review with meta-analysis of the epidemiological characteristics of the 2022 Mpox outbreaks

BACKGROUND

In 2022, there were outbreaks of Mpox where the disease is not endemic. We summarized published full-text epidemiological data from the outbreaks.

METHODS

A global evidence review (protocol: osf.io/j3kb7) with systematic literature search up to February 09, 2023. We focused on experimental/observational studies of laboratory confirmed Mpox, excluding case reports and case series of < 5 cases. Epidemiological data were pooled using an inverse variance, random-effects model, and pooled estimates presented with associated 95% confidence intervals.

RESULTS

We included 66 studies. Mean incubation period was 7.8 days (6.6-9.0 days, 8 studies: 560 cases), reproductive number 1.8 (1.7-1.9, 6 studies), mean duration from symptom onset to diagnosis 5.8 days (4.8-6.8 days, 4 studies: 982 cases), mean symptom duration 17.5 days (14.7-20.2 days, 3 studies: 292 cases), mean serial interval 8.5 days (7.3-9.9 days, 1 study), hospitalisation 6% (4-9%, 26 studies: 5339 cases), and vaccine effectiveness 78% (65-91%, 3 studies: 953 cases). Highly relevant clinical manifestations were pleomorphic skin lesions 82% (68-94%, 26 studies: 4093 cases), anogenital lesions 64% (51-77%, 9 studies: 10,398 cases), fever 54% (50-57%, 52 studies: 25,992 cases), and lymphadenopathy 51% (46-57%, 42 studies: 17,803 cases), with cases mostly men who have sex with men (MSM). Possibly relevant manifestations were perianal lesions, fatigue, asthenia, myalgia, and headache.

CONCLUSIONS

The 2022 Mpox outbreaks presented with sex-related clinical manifestations and were mostly reported among MSM.

Demographic and Clinical Characteristics of Mpox Patients Attending an STD Clinic in Lisbon

Mpox is a viral disease caused by the monkeypox virus, which marked the year of 2022 with a global outbreak. While previously considered to be a zoonosis of almost exclusive animal-to-human transmission, the current outbreak has been attributed to human-to-human transmission, particularly sexual transmission. As a new sexually transmissible disease, we studied the epidemiological and clinical features, as well as the concomitant occurrence of other sexually transmissible diseases, treatment approach, and outcome of our 291 patients, in the current outbreak. We found a total of 169 concomitant sexually transmissible infections of bacterial and viral origins, corresponding to 107 patients. Neisseria gonorrhoeae was the most common agent, particularly in the anal location. With this work, we emphasize the need for a thorough epidemiological and medical history, as well as a concomitant complete laboratorial screening for other STIs in patients with confirmed or suspected mpox.

Monkeypox Outbreak in Peru

Monkeypox (Mpox) is a zoonotic disease caused by the Orthopoxvirus monkeypox virus (MPXV). Since 1970, outbreaks of MPXV have occurred in several Sub-Saharan African countries. However, from May 2022 to April 2023, recent outbreaks of Mpox occurred in several countries outside of Africa, and these cases quickly spread to over 100 non-endemic countries on all continents. Most of these cases were found in the region of the Americas and the Europe region. In Latin America, the highest all-age Mpox rates per million inhabitants were in Peru, Colombia, Chile, and Brazil. Given its global impact, Mpox was declared as an international Public Health Emergency by WHO in July 2022. MPXV infection disproportionately affects men who have sex with men and members of the HIV-infected population. Vaccination is the current strategy for controlling and preventing Mpox in high-risk groups. In this context, Peru has the fourth-highest number of Mpox cases in Latin America and faces significant challenges in disease control. Because of this, in this review, we discuss the epidemiology, public health indicators, and prevention of Mpox in the 2022 Peru outbreak so that health authorities can join forces to control MPXV transmission.

Interdisciplinary management of mpox-related local complications: report on a series of cases

Monkeypox (mpox) is a viral zoonosis, and human-to-human transmission can result from close contact with the respiratory secretions and mucocutaneous lesions of an infected person. The prodromal phase is followed by an eruptive phase, with skin and/or mucosal lesions that progress through several stages at different sites. In this study, we describe the importance of interdisciplinary care management and follow-up of patients with complicated mpox. A cross-sectional study was conducted from May 2022 until August 2022 at a secondary hospital in Madrid (Spain). Out of 100 patients with mpox seen at this institution, we selected and analyzed 11 with local complications. All the patients were male at birth, and the mean age was 32 (30-42) years. The clinical manifestations included skin rash or mucosal lesions, fever, myalgia and lymphadenopathies. The most frequent local complications were pharyngitis associated with dysphagia, penile edema, infection of the mucocutaneous lesions, and ulceration of the genital lesions. A multidisciplinary team was created for the care of patients with complications secondary to mpox. The team comprised dermatologists and specialists in infectious diseases, preventive medicine, and emergency medicine. This approach improved the ability to diagnose and treat early with supportive, topical, and systemic treatment. In our center most of the cases were self-limiting, and none were life-threatening. An interdisciplinary response to a public health alert enhances the management of complex patients and should be implemented in successive outbreaks of mpox.