Delhi govt’s primary focus to trace the source of monkeypox patient’s infection

The state health department has directed agencies to tighten screening norms, especially at entry points to the city, after the national capital reported its first monkeypox case on Sunday

The state health department has directed agencies to tighten screening norms, especially at entry points to the city, after the national capital reported its first monkeypox case on Sunday.

HT Image

A senior official of Delhi government’s health department on Sunday said the director general of health services in a meeting directed all states and Union territories to ramp up monkeypox screening and ensure close surveillance of the infection in their states.

The Delhi government has started tracing the contact history of the Delhi patient who tested positive for the infection, the official said.

“Since he does not have a history of foreign travel, it makes the case slightly more complicated. The patient’s immediate family has been quarantined and their symptoms are being traced,” said the health official.

Another Delhi government official said that they have been on alert since April, when the Union health ministry issued its monkeypox guidelines to hospitals directing that patients, especially those with travel history, showing signs of acute rash, swollen lymph nodes, fever, headaches, body aches or weakness need to be identified as suspected cases. For such cases, probable links to viral exposure need to be studied and samples need to be sent immediately for polymerase chain reaction testing.

Apart from hospitals, district administrations were also alerted to keep their resources ready for contact tracing and to isolate patients in case an infection is detected in the Capital.

A standardised ‘case reporting form’ has also been circulated to hospitals and districts, which would require them to enlist all the details of the suspected patient, people who have been in touch with the probable patient, symptoms and medical history.

Following the Centre’s guidelines, the government had also identified Lok Nayak Hospital as a nodal hospital for the disease, where isolation wards were readied much before the first case was confirmed on Sunday.

Dr Suresh Kumar, medical director, Lok Nayak Hospital, said that because the protocol was already in place, the patient’s admission, isolation and detection was done in a matter of two days.

“The patient was admitted on Friday with fever and skin lesions. On Saturday, we sent his samples for testing to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune and on Sunday morning we got the positive report. The patient is in isolation since Friday and his condition is currently stable,” said Dr Kumar.