Abstract
Introduction During the 2022 outbreak of mpox (previously called monkeypox), which primarily affected men who have sex with men (MSM), testing was mainly limited to individuals with symptoms of infection. Although sporadic cases of mpox continue to be diagnosed in Denmark, the benefit of screening asymptomatic high-risk populations, such as those using HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), is still unknown.
Methods During the autumn of 2022, a rectal swab test for mpox PCR was included in the routine sexually transmitted infections (STI) screening for PrEP users.
Results The screening included 224 asymptomatic men with a median age of 36.5 years. One patient (0.4%) tested positive for mpox. Ten (4.5%) and nine (4.0%) had chlamydia and gonorrhea, respectively.
Discussion We found one case of mpox, who developed symptoms three days after testing positive. This finding may reflect low to non-existing levels of asymptomatic infection among mpox patients. Based on the current study, screening for asymptomatic mpox infection among PrEP users does not seem warranted.
Competing Interest Statement
Seegene sponsored the reagents used to perform the PCR for MPOX. AML reports unrestricted research grants from Gilead and speaker honoraria/advisory bord activity from Gilead, GSK, and Pfizer with no relation to the current study. FNE reports speaker honoraria from MSD with no relation to the current study.
Clinical Trial
The study was approved by the legal department of The Capital Region of Denmark (Authorization number P-2020-315)
Funding Statement
Institutional funding Seegene sponsored the reagents used to perform the PCR for MPOX. AML reports unrestricted research grants from Gilead and speaker honoraria/advisory bord activity from Gilead, GSK, and Pfizer with no relation to the current study. FNE reports speaker honoraria from MSD with no relation to the current study.
Author Declarations
I confirm all relevant ethical guidelines have been followed, and any necessary IRB and/or ethics committee approvals have been obtained.
Yes
The details of the IRB/oversight body that provided approval or exemption for the research described are given below:
Scientific ethics committee of Capital Region of Denmark waived ethical approval for this work
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Data Availability
All data produced in the present study are available upon reasonable request to the authors
Abbreviations
- MSM
- Men who have Sex with Men
- HIV
- Human Immunodeficiency Virus
- PrEP
- Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis
- STI
- Sexually Transmitted Infections
- PCR
- Polymerase Chain Reaction
- WHO
- World Health Organization