Mpox in the United States and Around the World: Current Situation

What to know

  • There are two types of the virus that causes mpox, clade I and clade II. Both types spread the same way and can be prevented using the same methods.
  • There have been nearly 36,000 cases of clade I mpox in several countries in Central and Eastern Africa.
  • There have also been several travel-associated clade I mpox cases reported in countries in other parts of Africa, Australia, Europe, Asia, North America, and South America.
  • There's an outbreak of clade II mpox in West Africa, where mpox is endemic. Several cases in the United States have been tied to travel from the area.
  • Clade II mpox cases continue to spread at low levels in many countries around the world.
  • CDC works with public health partners across the world to monitor for mpox cases and increase surveillance capacity, in addition to other activities.
A colorized transmission electron microscopic image of mpox virus particles, found within an infected cell

Current situation

In the United States

  • There have been five reported cases of clade I mpox in the United States in people who had recently traveled to affected areas in Central and Eastern Africa. The cases are separate events and are not linked; no additional spread of mpox has been reported.
  • CDC regularly assesses the risk to the overall population and specific populations within the United States posed by the clade I mpox outbreak; it remains low.
  • Clade II mpox is still circulating at low levels.
    • Several cases have recently been tied back to an outbreak in Sierra Leone and other West African countries that are endemic for mpox.
  • Children have historically gotten mpox in endemic areas in Western and Central Africa, and in this outbreak the high number of children with mpox reported in likely reflects spread within households.
    • Based on what we know right now, we don't expect to see the same sort of risk in children if mpox were introduced in the United States for reasons including different household makeup and size, access to disinfecting products, and improved access to medical care.
Clade I Mpox Outbreak Originating in Central Africa
An outbreak of clade I mpox is occurring in Central and Eastern Africa
Clade II Mpox Outbreaks around the World
Information on the ongoing outbreak of clade II mpox

Across the globe

  • There are outbreaks of clade I mpox in Central and Eastern Africa.
    • Clade I has two subclades, clade Ia and clade Ib.
    • In Central Africa, people have gotten clade Ia mpox through contact with infected dead or live wild animals, household transmission, or patient care; a high proportion of clade Ia cases have been reported in children younger than 15 years of age.
    • More recently, subclade Ib has been identified in the eastern part of Democratic Republic of the Congo and has spread through intimate and adult sexual contact, including heterosexual spread with sex trade workers. Further spread outside of eastern DRC has occurred.
    • Based on what we know now, clade Ib mpox has a lower case-fatality rate than clade Ia mpox.
  • Sustained and local person-to-person spread of clade I mpox has taken place in some non-endemic countries through sexual contact, day-to-day household contact, and within the healthcare setting in the absence of personal protective equipment.
  • As of July 16, 2025, the countries of Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia are experiencing sustained human-to-human transmission of the virus; there is also evidence of sustained transmission in Central African Republic and Republic of the Congo.
  • As of July 16, 2025, countries reporting travel-associated cases of clade I mpox since January 1, 2024, include Angola, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Italy, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Zimbabwe.
  • The ongoing global outbreak of clade IIb mpox has caused more than 100,000 cases in 122 total countries, including 115 countries where mpox was not previously reported.
  • Sierra Leone is experiencing an outbreak of clade II mpox. CDC is tracking a recent uptick of U.S. cases of clade II across several different states linked to this outbreak. CDC is collaborating with several U.S. laboratories and Sierra Leone contacts to better understand the situation.
    • Travelers to Sierra Leone should review the traveler's health page, which includes information about the mpox vaccine for eligible people.

Global case data

For global case data since January 1, 2024, see 2022-24 Mpox (Monkeypox) Outbreak: Global Trends (shinyapps.io). Confirmed cases include those that are laboratory confirmed as monkeypox virus and may include cases only confirmed as orthopoxvirus. These data are provided for situational awareness and are subject to change.

What CDC is doing

In Africa

  • CDC continues critical work to protect the United States from emerging and infectious diseases. CDC has collaborated closely with key USG partners in affected countries to help support efforts to stop mpox at the source.
  • CDC and in-country partners across Africa have worked together on disease surveillance, laboratory capacity-building, strengthening local workforce capacity, case investigation, strengthening case management, infection prevention and control, and vaccine strategy and planning.
  • CDC collaborated with governmental and civil society partners in affected countries to collect and analyze case data, and to identify how mpox is spreading.
  • CDC trained 80 field epidemiologists in DRC and continues to provide key support for many who are still working in priority health zones. These CDC-trained epidemiologists are playing a key role in DRC efforts to detect cases, trace and monitor contacts, and increase community awareness of mpox, while also collecting and sending specimens to labs for testing, and training healthcare workers to do the same.
  • CDC staff in DRC provided technical assistance and CDC provides funding through cooperative agreements to the DRC Ministry of Health and USG implementing partners such as AFENET, Gavi and the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
  • CDC is coordinating technical assistance in response to urgent needs identified by national governments and local partners in the areas of laboratory, surveillance, risk communication and community engagement, case management, infection prevention and control, psychosocial support, and vaccine planning.
  • The U.S. government is also working closely with several other countries in the region to assist with monitoring the situation as new information becomes available.
  • CDC's staff stationed in several countries affected by or on the border with countries with mpox cases provide critical information to inform U.S. preparedness efforts. Staff are connected to CDC's response efforts and can provide critical, real-time information to inform CDC's understanding of the outbreak, mitigate importation of cases into the U.S., and inform U.S. preparedness efforts.
  • Response efforts include increasing the number of mpox testing sites across DRC; improving specimen transport networks to quickly identify new cases; assisting with Ministry of Health-led vaccine implementation; strengthening emergency management systems; improving case surveillance; and training healthcare workers on infection prevention and control.

In the United States

  • CDC works closely with state, tribal, local, and territorial public health departments to provide recommendations for clinical management, diagnosis, and prevention of mpox cases in the U.S.
  • CDC continually increases capacity in communities across the United States for early detection of mpox through existing surveillance systems, including wastewater testing.
  • CDC raises awareness for healthcare providers, including the latest guidance for considering mpox as a possible diagnosis in certain patients.
  • CDC has information and recommendations for members of the public, including those traveling to Central or Eastern Africa: Travel Health Notice and Health Alert Network advisory.
  • CDC works with researchers and partner organizations to increase health equity around mpox and ensure that the populations most affected by mpox have access to the mpox vaccine.
  • CDC conducts assessments to determine the risks of mpox to the people in the United States.

Resources

Publications

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