Test for mpox in all MSM with ‘compatible’ symptoms, doctors urged amid fresh outbreaks

Gay and bisexual men with symptoms suggestive of mpox should be tested for the virus regardless of travel history, vaccination status or prior infection, health authorities are warning.
The updated advice to GPs and sexual health clinicians in NSW follows a recent spike in infections, with a total of 14 cases of mpox reported this year.
Nationally, there have 88 cases detected since 1 January, compared to just 26 cases for all of 2023, according to the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System.
NSW Health wrote to doctors on Tuesday with updated advice on mpox testing and management after eight cases were detected in the state in the previous week, with an additional three cases recorded since.