Mpox has become the most significant orthopoxviral
infection among humans. Since May 2022, there has been a multicountry outbreak of
mpox across six continents. Retrospective observational cohort study of 94 patients with probable or confirmed
mpox of whom 86.2% were hospitalized in Hospital for
Infectious Diseases in Warsaw, Poland between May 16 and October 30, 2022. Most patients were young (median age: 31, IQR: 25-43 years), predominantly (88.3%) Polish men who have sex with men exposed most commonly in Poland (82.7%), Spain (6.2%), or Germany (4.9%). The median observed
mpox incubation period was 7 (IQR: 4-8) days with the median hospitalization time of 7 (range: 2-24, IQR: 5-11) days. History of
sexually transmitted infections (
STIs) was common in the group (previous
syphilis or hepatitis C virus in 33.3% and 17.3%, respectively, 6.2% of early
syphilis or
gonorrhea). A significant proportion (n = 43, 45.7%) of
mpox cases were people with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), all except one were on stable and virologically effective (88.4% with HIV viral load <50 copies/mL) antiretroviral treatment. Chemsex was reported in 34.6% of hospitalized cases, more commonly among people with HIV (48.5% vs. 25.0%, p = 0.029). None of the
mpox infected patients presented with advanced
HIV infection. Despite the fact that 6.3% of cases presented with >50 skin lesions the course of the disease was self-limited with no severe cases or deaths. There were no significant clinical or laboratory differences or complication rates between patients with and without
HIV coinfection. Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of
mpox in Poland are similar to other countries, but there were no targeted, population oriented interventions or vaccination programs.
Mpox diagnosis provided an opportunity to screen and diagnose other
STIs. As Central European populations, including refugees from Ukraine, are largely unvaccinated against
mpox access to preventive vaccinations and
antiviral therapy should be maximized.