The Union Health Ministry on Friday reported that a young male patient, who had recently returned from a country with monkeypox infection, has been confirmed to have monkeypox. The patient has been kept in isolation at a designated hospital and his condition is said to be stable. The Health Ministry says that samples of the patient have been collected and tests are underway to confirm the presence of monkeypox. This is the first case of monkeypox in the country. The report is awaited.

On Sunday, the first confirmed case of monkeypox was found in the country. The Health Ministry has said that the patient has recently returned from a country where there are cases of monkeypox. The patient has been kept in isolation in the hospital and samples have been taken to confirm monkeypox. Currently, the patient's condition is stable.

Public Health Emergency by WHO

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared monkeypox a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) on August 14. After this, on August 17, Health Minister JP Nadda reviewed the situation and preparations. There were no cases of monkeypox in India then, but the Indian government had started taking active measures to prevent the possible spread of the disease.

Effects of the smallpox vaccine

The Health Ministry had recently asked all states to be prepared to deal with monkeypox. Airports and hospitals have also been alerted. Experts say that people who have received the smallpox vaccine will not be affected by monkeypox. In Delhi, Safdarjung, RML and Lady Hardinge hospitals have been selected as nodal hospitals for the treatment of monkeypox. The Health Ministry has issued an advisory to all states, asking them to make people aware about the disease and provide information about preventive measures.

The Health Ministry has given the following instructions to the states:

Widely disseminate guidelines for management of monkeypox disease.
Act on updated CD-alerts issued by NCDC.
Review preparedness of health facilities at state and district levels.
Identify isolation facilities in hospitals and ensure availability of necessary material and trained human resources.
Provide orientation to all critical stakeholders, including reorientation of disease surveillance units on case definition, contact tracing and other surveillance activities.

AIIMS has also issued SOP regarding monkeypox. Under this, patients with fever, rash or coming in contact with monkeypox cases should be marked for immediate evaluation. The major symptoms include fever, headache, muscle pain, back pain, swollen lymph nodes, chills, fatigue and typical skin lesions.

AIIMS has advised to keep suspected patients in isolation areas to minimise contact with other patients and staff. Safdarjung Hospital has also been authorised to manage and treat monkeypox patients. All patients have been advised to be handled with strict infection control measures, and staff have been instructed to use personal protective equipment (PPE).

Proper documentation of patient details, symptoms and referral process should be maintained. This protocol should be disseminated to all concerned departments and staff to ensure a coordinated and effective response to suspected cases of monkeypox.

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