ArticleCommunications medicine2026
Behavior change and infection induced immunity led to the decline of the 2022 Mpox outbreak in Berlin.
Article in Communications medicine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
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Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- Serologic evidence of mpox virus exposure among people living with human immunodeficiency virus in Thailand predating clinical recognition during the 2022 outbreak.IJID regions · 2026Article
- Rapid spread of MPXV clade Ib with high genetic relatedness among men who have sex with men, Berlin, Germany, week 50 2025 up to week 10 2026.Euro surveillance : bulletin Europeen sur les maladies transmissibles = European communicable disease bulletin · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
9 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundMpox denotes a viral zoonosis caused by the Orthopoxvirus monkeypox (MPXV), which is endemic in West and Central Africa. In spring 2022, notable outbreaks of MPXV clade IIb were recorded in several high-income countries, predominantly affecting men who have sex with men (MSM). At the peak of the outbreak, over 200 new mpox cases per week were reported in Berlin, which constitutes one of the largest MSM population in Europe. Within the same year, the outbreak significantly declined, and it is unclear which factors contributed to this rapid decrease.
methodsTo investigate the concomitant effects of sexual contact networks, transient contact reductions and the effect of infection- vs. vaccine-derived immunity on the 2022 mpox outbreak, we calibrated an agent-based model with epidemic, vaccination, contact- and behavioral data.
resultsOur results indicate that vaccination has a marginal effect on the epidemic decline. Rather, a combination of infection-induced immunity of high-contact individuals, as well as transient behavior changes reduce the number of susceptible individuals below the epidemic threshold. However, the 2022 mpox vaccination campaign, together with infection-derived immunity may contribute to herd-immunity in the Berlin MSM population against ongoing clade I mpox outbreaks. Demographic changes and immune waning may deteriorate this herd immunity over time.
conclusionsThese findings highlight that, in addition to vaccination, timely and clear communication of transmission routes may trigger spontaneous protective behavior within key populations; underscoring the importance of targeted sexual health education as a core component of outbreak response.
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Registered trials
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