India's monkeypox virus case tally has surged to four after a 31-year-old resident of west Delhi - with no recent foreign travel history - got infected. The update was shared by the union health ministry on Sunday, which also held a high-level meeting amid concerns over global spread, a day after the WHO sounded a public health emergency. Worldwide, over 16,000 cases have been registered so far.
Meanhile, Dr Suresh Kumar, medical director of Delhi's Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital, has advised people to “exercise caution, wear face masks, and maintain social distancing to prevent the transmission of the virus."
Speaking to news agency ANI, Dr Kumar said “the protocol for treating monkeypox is wearing masks and observing social distancing”. He further said that the disease is similar to “chickenpox”, which causes an itchy rash with small, fluid-filled blisters on the skin. The patient in Delhi is "currently stable and is recovering well", Dr Kumar added.
"The person was admitted two days ago. He had fever and skin rash. We kept him under observation. Later his samples were sent to Pune and today we received the report in which he was found positive for monkeypox. He's being treated as per protocol," he underlined.
Officials confirmed that the man started showing the first symptoms at least 10 days back. He first developed fever, and in subsequent days started showing skin lesions. He was admitted to Lok Nayak Hospital’s isolation ward two days back. The results were confirmed on Sunday by the National Institute of Virology, Pune.
{{/usCountry}}Officials confirmed that the man started showing the first symptoms at least 10 days back. He first developed fever, and in subsequent days started showing skin lesions. He was admitted to Lok Nayak Hospital’s isolation ward two days back. The results were confirmed on Sunday by the National Institute of Virology, Pune.
{{/usCountry}}Shortly after the confirmation, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said that “there is no need to panic .The situation is under control,”. The Delhi administration had designated the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash (LNJP) Hospital as the centre to treat monkeypox cases.
The central government had released a host of guidelines to check the virus spread in India, including those at the entry points to the country. International passengers have been advised to avoid close contact with sick persons, dead or live wild animals, and others. They have also been advised against eating or preparing meat from wild game or using items such as powders and lotions, derived from wild animals from Africa.
(With inputs from ANI)