AIIMS lab for monkeypox testing almost ready

Doctors of the hospital said they have received monkeypox testing kits from the National Institute of Virology in Pune and have also completed trials for the testing facility.

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) has almost finished working on its monkeypox testing lab--one of 15 designated labs across the country--to test samples for the infection.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared monkey pox as a global health emergency. (REUTERS)

Doctors of the hospital said they have received monkeypox testing kits from the National Institute of Virology in Pune and have also completed trials for the testing facility.

“The facility is ready to start functioning.The facility will provide results of test samples within 24 hours,” a senior doctor said.

The Indian Council of Medical Research has dedicated 15 labs, including those in AIIMS-Delhi, Kasturba Hospital for Infectious Diseases, Mumbai, Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute, Bengaluru, Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram, and NIV field unit in Kerala, King Institute of Preventive Medicine and Research, Chennai, and National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases, Kolkata among others, to monkeypox testing.

Monkeypox is a viral zoonosis (a virus transmitted to humans from animals) with symptoms similar to those seen in the past in smallpox patients. Though clinically less severe than smallpox, monkeypox symptoms are characterised by fever, body aches, headaches and lymphadenopathy (enlarged lymph nodes of the neck leading to rashes on the face, palms, and hands and feet or legs).

The World Health Organization on Saturday declared monkeypox a “public health emergency of international concern”. Till now, there have been over 16,000 cases reported from 75 countries in the world. In India, there are currently four confirmed cases—three from Kerala and one from Delhi.