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Mpox, a reemerging zoonotic disease since 2022, primarily affects the skin; ocular involvement is rarely reported. We present a case of mpox-caused disciform keratitis treated with a combination of cidofovir and tecovirimat.
The patient recovered without residual ocular sequelae, suggesting these drugs are an option to treat ocular mpox manifestations. Mpox is a reemerging zoonotic disease, with >140,000 cases reported worldwide since 2022 ( 1 ).
A major outbreak of mpox caused by clade IIb monkeypox virus (MPXV) occurred in Western Europe and the United States in 2022, although MPXV clade I has caused high mortality rates in Central Africa for decades ( 2 ). MPXV, a member of the Poxviridae family ( 3 ), is primarily transmitted through close physical contact between humans and typically causes disseminated cutaneomucosal lesions ( 4 ).
Ocular involvement occurs in ≈1%–10% of cases, with a higher frequency in MPXV clade I infections ( 5 ).
CDC Emerging Infectious Diseases Journal published a clinical update in Infectious Disease on 10 Apr 2026.
The item focuses on Treatment of Severe Ocular Mpox with Cidofovir and Tecovirimat.
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