5 Essential things to note and lower risk of infection

The mpox strain that caused the public health emergency has now been detected in India as well. Read on to muster the essential details about the virus and how to lower risk of infection.

Mpox outbreak has taken on the world. Cases have also been reported in India. On Monday, first case of mpox clade 1 was detected in Kerala. Clade 1 strain of mpox led to the public health emergency of international concern. Since the 2022 declaration of Mpox as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern by the WHO, 30 cases were reported in India.

Mpox in India

India has reported the first case of the Mpox strain in a patient from Kerala who had tested positive last week, official sources said on Monday. They said Clade 1b strain has been detected in a 38-year-old man from Malappuram district who had recently returned from the United Arab Emirates as per PTI reports.

The patient is stable, the sources said, adding “this was the first case of the current strain that led to the World Health Organization declaring Mpox a public health emergency last month for a second time”. The earlier case of Mpox that emerged in the national capital was a 26-year-old resident of Haryana’s Hisar who has tested positive for the previous West African Clade 2 strain earlier this month.

5 Things about Mpox in India know

1. Kerala Health minister Veena George has already appealed to the public, including those returning from abroad with any symptoms, to inform the health department and seek treatment at the earliest.Besides this, treatment was available in all medical colleges in the state, the minister said.
2. Mpox infections are generally self-limiting, lasting between two and four weeks, and patients usually recover with supportive medical care and management.
3. It is transmitted through prolonged and close contact with an infected patient.
4. Mpox typically manifests itself with fever, rash and swollen lymph nodes and may lead to a range of medical complications.
5. The state health department has already stepped up surveillance in airports in the state in accordance with the Centre’s guidelines in the wake of the outbreak of Mpox in many African countries.