Suspected Mpox Outbreak on Grain Ship Confirmed as Chicken Pox

What was initially feared to be an Mpox outbreak on a grain ship has been confirmed as a false alarm, with subsequent tests revealing the infection to be chicken pox.

The vessel was quarantined after a crewmember of Indian origin reported cyst-like lesions that resembled those associated with Mpox. However, tests conducted by Argentine authorities returned negative for Mpox, confirming instead that the case was chicken pox.

The ship had been quarantined near the port of Rosario, with the affected crewmember isolated from the rest of the crew. The vessel had arrived from Santos, Brazil, and was scheduled to load a shipment of soy at its next destination.

While Argentine authorities have not released the name of the ship, they did confirm that it is registered under the Liberian flag.

This incident follows the recent declaration by the World Health Organization (WHO) of Mpox as a global health emergency, as the more transmissible "clade 1b" strain rapidly spreads across Africa.