The Centre’s advice came amid the first confirmed case of Mpox discovered in the country on Monday. According to the Union Health Ministry, a man who had arrived in the country after a trip abroad tested positive for monkeypox virus infection.
The fear of monkeypox:The central government on Monday urged all states and Union Territories to screen and test all suspected cases of monkeypox (mpox) in their respective jurisdictions. A letter issued by Union Health Secretary Apurva Chandra asked all states and Union Territories to remain prepared and identify isolation facilities in hospitals for suspected and confirmed patients.
First positive case of Mpox confirmed in India
The Centre’s advice came amid the first confirmed case of Mpox discovered in the country on Monday. According to the Union Health Ministry, a man who had arrived in the country after a trip abroad tested positive for the viral infection.
“The previously suspected case of mpox has been confirmed as a travel-related infection. Laboratory tests have confirmed the presence of West African clade-2 mpox virus in the patient,” the ministry said.
However, it stated that the case is isolated, similar to the previous 30 cases reported in India as of July 2022, and is not part of the current public health emergency reported by WHO that refers to Mpox clade 1.
“The individual, a young man who recently travelled from a country where ongoing MPOX transmission is occurring, is currently isolated at a designated tertiary care isolation facility. The patient remains clinically stable and does not have any systemic illness or comorbidities,” the ministry said.
Ensuring readiness: from the centre to the states and territories of the Union
Meanwhile, in the letter to states and Union Territories, the Centre has asked them to enhance public health preparedness, particularly at the health facility level, identify isolation facilities in hospitals and ensure availability of necessary logistics and trained human resources at such facilities.
The Union Health Secretary also sought guidance from all key stakeholders with a focus on surveillance units under the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) at the state and district levels to reorient them on definitions of suspected, probable and confirmed cases, contact tracing and other surveillance activities.
Spreading knowledge about Mpox
In the letter, Chandra asked all states to create awareness among people about Mpox disease, its mode of spread, need for timely reporting and preventive measures, besides reviewing public health preparedness and isolation facilities for suspected and confirmed cases.
“No new case of mpox has been reported in India in the current outbreak, and none of the samples from suspected cases have tested positive,” he had said before news of the first positive case broke, adding that the Health Ministry continues to closely monitor the evolving situation.
WHO declares Mpox a ‘public health emergency’
On August 14, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the current mpox outbreak a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) following the continuously increasing trend of mpox cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo over the past six months.
The WHO said cases of mpox have been reported in more recent East African countries, including Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda.
In its latest situation update, WHO highlighted that the clinical picture of cases has largely remained the same, Chandra said, listing key features whereby most cases are young males with a median age of 34 years (range 18-44 years).
Among the modes of transmission reported globally, sexual contact is the most commonly reported, followed by non-sexual person-to-person contact and among cases where at least one symptom is reported, the most common symptom is rash, followed by fever, Chandra said in the letter.
(With contributions from agencies)
