Health officials say two more cases of the new strain of mpox virus have been found in London, in household contacts of the first patient.

Both men are now in specialist care at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust.

All three patients were infected with the clade 1b variant of the virus, which was first found in central Africa and appears to spread more easily between people.

Professor Susan Hopkins, chief medical adviser to the UK Health Protection Agency (UKHSA), said that Mpox – known formally as monkeypox – can spread rapidly within households and that further cases were “not unexpected”.

“The overall risk to the UK population remains low,” he said.

“We are working with partners to ensure that all contacts of cases are identified and contacted to reduce the risk of further spread.”

The agency said those individuals will be offered testing and vaccination if needed.

MPox is usually spread by close physical contact, and transmission within a household does not mean that the virus has been found in the wider community in the UK.

last week, UKHSA reports first case of clade 1b mpox in London In a patient who had recently been on vacation to one of the least affected countries in Africa and began feeling ill 24 hours after getting home.

The patient developed flu-like symptoms on October 22 and a rash appeared two days later.

The MPox rash of pus-filled lesions can last up to a month. Other symptoms include fever, headache and low energy.

Laboratory testing confirmed that the infection was clade 1b. This form of the virus is causing increasing concern.

It appears to be able to spread more easily from person to person through physical contact, including sex, than other types of MPOX.

had mpox Global health emergency declared by the World Health Organization In summer.

In Africa, cases of new clade 1b strains have been reported this year in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Burundi and Rwanda.

Infections linked to travel to affected countries have been detected in the UK, Sweden, India and Germany.

This is separate from an outbreak that began in 2022 primarily affecting gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, known as Clade II. These mpox infections still occur at low levels.