The first case of mpox of the year has been detected in Malta, health authorities announced on Friday. 

At this stage, authorities have not identified whether it is the new variant of the virus, which has sparked global alarm.

The patient, who represents an imported case of the disease, which was sexually transmitted, is clinically stable and does not require hospital admission. 

A health ministry spokesperson said the patient has been isolated and that contact tracing is underway to prevent further transmission. 

 The ministry urged the public to take the following precautions to reduce the risk of mpox transmission: 

• Practice safe sex and have open conversations with partners about sexual health.
• Avoid close contact with individuals who exhibit symptoms of mpox, such as fever, rash, and swollen lymph nodes.
• Maintain good hygiene practices, including regular hand washing with soap and water.
• Seek medical advice if you experience symptoms or have been in contact with someone diagnosed with mpox.

Malta first detected earlier strains of mpox in 2022, with the first case reported in May when the patient returned from overseas in a country where several cases of the virus had been detected. 

By August of that year, the number of cases had shot up to 31, with Malta registering the fifth-highest incidence rate of mpox in Europe at the time. 

Later the government made a vaccine available to primary contacts of mpox patients free of charge. 

How is mpox spread?

The UN health agency says on its website that mpox spreads between people mainly through close physical contact with someone who has the virus.

"Close contact includes skin-to-skin (such as touching or sex) and mouth-to-mouth, or mouth-to-skin contact (such as kissing)," it says.

It can also include "being face-to-face with someone who has mpox (such as talking or breathing close to one another, which can generate infectious respiratory particles)".

WHO spokeswoman Margaret Harris said Tuesday that if a person with the virus had lesions, "if you're talking closely to someone, breathing on them, physically close, face-to-face, there is a possibility" of viral spread, "but this is a minor source".

Instead, "what we're seeing is the close, physical skin-to-skin" contact as the chief route of transmission, she told a briefing in Geneva.

"When you're talking to somebody, you're spitting out droplets," but "it's not a very major form of transmission - and it's not a... through-the-air, long-distance sort of transmission".

"More research is needed to fully understand the transmission dynamics," Harris added.

The WHO recommends the use of facemasks for those with mpox, their close contacts and health workers treating them.

What is the new strain?

There are two subtypes of mpox: Clade 1, endemic in the Congo Basin in central Africa; and Clade 2, endemic in West Africa.

The surge in the DR Congo is being driven by surges of two different Clade 1 strains.

The first is an outbreak in northwest DRC of what was previously known as Clade 1, now called Clade 1a.

The second, in northeastern DRC, is a new offshoot of Clade 1 called Clade 1b, which was first detected in September last year and is spreading rapidly.

The spread of Clade 1b, and its detection in nearby countries, were the main reasons behind the WHO sounding its top emergency alarm.

Clade 1 mpox is known to be more virulent than Clade 2 mpox and has a higher fatality rate.

As for whether Clade 1b is more dangerous than Clade 1a, Harris said: "We don't have that data." 

"Studies are underway to understand the properties of the new strain. But available epidemiological data doesn't really suggest that the clade 1b variant causes more severe cases and deaths."