Characteristics of women diagnosed with mpox infection compared to men: A case series from Brazil

• Published in: Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease
• Main Authors: Carolina Coutinho, Mayara Secco Torres Silva, Thiago S. Torres, Eduardo Peixoto, Monica Avelar Magalhães, Sandra Wagner Cardoso, Gabriela Nazário, Maíra Mendonça, Mariana Menezes, Paula Maria Almeida, Paula Rita Dias de Brito de Carvalho, Shenon Bia Bedin, Aline Maria Almeida, Silvia Carvalho, Valdilea Gonçalves Veloso, Beatriz Grinsztejn, Luciane Velasque, André Figueiredo Accetta, André Miguel Japiassu, Bruna Rendelli, Desirée Vieira Santos, Gabriela Lisseth Umaña Robleda, Guilherme Amaral Calvet, Hugo Perazzo Pedroso Barbosa, Italo Guariz Ferreira, Jadir Rodrigues Fagundes Neto, João Paulo Bortot Soares, João Victor Jaegger de França, José Ricardo Hildebrant Coutinho, Katia Maria Azevedo, Larissa Villela, Luciana Truccoli, Luisa Fares, Luiz Ricardo Siqueira Camacho, Maira Braga Mesquita, Marcel Cunha, Marcel Trepow, Marcela Terra, Maria Roberta Meneguetti, Mariah Castro de Souza Pires, Pedro Amparo, Pedro da Silva Martins, Rafael Teixeira Fraga, Rodrigo Caldas Menezes, Rodrigo Otavio da Silva Escada, Rosangela Vieira Eiras, Sandro Antônio Pereira, Wladmyr Davila da Silva
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2023
• Subjects: Mpox; HIV; Women; Gender identity; Latin America; Brazil; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Infectious and parasitic diseases; RC109-216; Arctic
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tmaid.2023.102663; https://doaj.org/article/1070cc347bdb47418e68b8f35173c65e

Background: Cisgender men were mostly affected during the 2022 mpox multinational outbreak, with few cases reported in women. This study compares the characteristics of individuals diagnosed with mpox infection according to gender in Rio de Janeiro. Methods: We obtained surveillance data of mpox cases notified to Rio de Janeiro State Health Department (June 12 to December 15, 2022). We compared women (cisgender or transgender) to men (cisgender or transgender) using chi-squared, Fisher's exact, and Mood's median tests. Results: A total of 1306 mpox cases were reported; 1188 (91.0%) men (99.8% cisgender, 0.2% transgender), 108 (8.3%) women (87.0% cisgender, 13.0% transgender), and 10 (0.8%) non-binary persons. Compared to men, women were more frequently older (40+years: 34.3% vs. 25.1%; p < 0.001), reported more frequent non-sexual contact with a potential mpox case (21.4% vs. 9.8%; p = 0.004), fewer sexual partnerships (10.9 vs. 54.8%; p < 0.001), less sexual contact with a potential mpox case (18.5% vs. 43.0%; p < 0.001), fewer genital lesions (31.8% vs. 57.9%; p < 0.001), fewer systemic mpox signs/symptoms (38.0% vs. 50.1%; p = 0.015) and had a lower HIV prevalence (8.3% vs. 46.3%; p < 0.001), with all cases among transgender women. Eight women were hospitalized; no deaths occurred. The highest number of cases among women were notified in epidemiological week 34, when the number of cases among men started to decrease. Conclusions: Women diagnosed with mpox presented differences in epidemiological, behavioral, and clinical characteristics compared to men. Health services should provide a comprehensive assessment that accounts for gender diversity.