Monkeypox cases set alarm bells ringing in Pakistan
National Institute of Health confirmed first case on Tuesday
ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) - Two cases of monkeypox virus were reported in Pakistan on Wednesday.
Officials of the Federal Ministry of Health said a person who came to Pakistan from Saudi Arabia on April 17 had symptoms of monkeypox. The officials of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences sent the samples of the affected person to the National Institute of Health in Islamabad, which confirmed the first case of the virus. The affected person is a resident of Rawalpindi.
Information about the second case is not clear, though officials claim there are two cases.
According to an official of the health ministry, the health authorities have started taking measures to prevent the spread of the disease. He said the person’s relatives were being screened and asked to remain in quarantine to ensure the virus does not spread.
He said airports across the country had been put on high alert after the detection of the virus besides taking other preventive measures.
According to health experts, monkeypox is a virus that spreads from animals including rats and primates to humans in exceptional cases. The infectious disease is endemic in Central and West Africa, where a majority of cases have occurred.
The virus was first discovered in 1958 after the outbreak of “pox-like” disease in laboratory monkeys, which gives it the name monkeypox. The symptoms include fever, body pains, chills and exhaustion, while people with severe illness can develop rashes and sores on the face and hands that can spread to other parts of the body.
The disease is a component of the same viral family as smallpox.
The quarantine period of the virus usually lasts between five days and three weeks, while a majority of people recover within two to four weeks without hospitalisation. However, one in 10 people can die of monkeypox and the disease is said to be severe in young people.
