The first case of monkeypox in India was found in Haryana. Two patients have been found in Kerala.
Second case of monkeypox (MPox) has been found in Kerala. The 29-year-old returned to Ernakulam, Kerala from the UAE. He had high fever. Investigation confirmed MPox. The strain of Mpox is not yet known.
Kerala health department said that the patient is undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Kochi. His samples have been sent to the National Institute of Virology, Pune for genomic sequencing. After the test, it will be known whether the patient is infected with the dangerous and fast-spreading clade-1b strain of MPox or not.
On September 18, the second case of mpox and the first case of the clade-1b strain was detected in India. A 38-year-old infected patient had returned from UAE to Malappuram, Kerala. He quarantined himself on September 17.
India's first MPox patient was found in Haryana On September 9, the first case of monkeypox was confirmed in the country. The old strain clade-2 was found in a 26-year-old man from Hisar, Haryana. The Union Health Ministry said the person had returned from abroad. He was kept in isolation on September 8. Samples were taken and tested, which confirmed monkeypox.
Monkeypox what is Monkeypox is a disease spread by a virus. Generally, this virus infection does not have many side effects, but in some cases it can be fatal. Due to this, flu-like symptoms appear and pus-filled blisters appear on the body. This virus is a member of the Orthopoxvirus genus family, which is also responsible for smallpox.
There are two distinct groups of viruses: clade-1 (subclades 1A and 1B) and clade-2 (subclades 2A and 2B). The clade-1b strain has been declared a global health emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO). Clade-1 is more lethal than Clade-2.
Union Health Ministry's advice to states On 9 September, Union Health Secretary Apoorva Chandra issued an advisory to all states and Union Territories regarding monkeypox. Chandra said that all states should take health measures to prevent the menace of monkeypox.
States should follow Ministry of Health guidelines on monkeypox. Action should be taken on the Communicable Disease Alert (CD Alert) declared by the National Center for Disease Control (NCDC) on monkeypox.
Apart from this, states should review the preparedness of their health facilities. Senior officials should review the health facilities of the districts.
WHO advice-
Most cases of monkeypox occur in young adults with a median age of 34 years (18–44 years). Most cases are transmitted through sexual contact.
WHO declared monkeypox a health emergency The World Health Organization (WHO) declared monkeypox a global health emergency on 14 August. On August 20, India declared an alert at all ports and airports in the country along the borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh.
This is the second time in two years that the WHO has declared a health emergency over monkeypox. According to the WHO report, monkeypox originated from the African country of Congo. Ten African countries are severely affected by it. After this it spread to rest of the world.
Like Corona, monkeypox spreads to different parts of the world through air travel and other means of travel. The WHO is also concerned because mortality rates have also varied between cases of monkeypox. Many times it has gone up to more than 10%.
99,176 cases of monkeypox and 208 deaths in 116 countries According to WHO, 99,176 cases and 208 deaths of monkeypox have been reported in 116 countries globally since 2022. More than 15,600 cases and 537 deaths have been reported so far this year. Since 2022, 30 cases of monkeypox (clade 2) have been reported in India. The last case came to light in March 2024. India has 32 labs for monkeypox testing.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
