BANGKOK -- Thailand reported its first suspected case of a more infectious variant of mpox in a European man who previously traveled to Africa before entering the Southeast Asian country last week, health officials said on Wednesday.

According to the Department of Disease Control (DDC), the 66-year-old has been diagnosed with mpox and quarantined in a hospital, while further tests are underway to confirm if the patient contracted the Clade 1b strain of the viral disease, as initial examinations showed it was not the less severe Clade 2 strain found earlier in the country.

The infected person arrived in Thailand on Aug 14 on a connecting flight from the Middle East, said DDC Director-General Thongchai Keeratihattayakorn, adding that officials have dispatched a team to trace and monitor 43 individuals who had close contact with him.

Authorities are stepping up preventative measures amid rising cases across Africa as health screening has been put in place at international entry points, including temperature checks and observation for skin rashes, Thongchai told a news conference.

He noted that Thailand detected its first case of mpox in 2022. Over 800 cases of Clade 2 mpox have been reported so far, with about 140 cases occurring this year.

The World Health Organization last week declared mpox a public health emergency of international concern amid an increasing number of cases of a deadlier new variant reported across and outside Africa.