Thiruvananthapuram: Mpox infection has been confirmed in a 38-year-old man in Kerala who recently came down from the UAE. He is under treatment at Manjeri government medical college hospital in Malappuram.
State Health Minister Veena George said on Wednesday that since Mpox was reported in Kerala in 2022 already a treatment protocol was in place in the state. Already surveillance was imposed at the airports. Those coming down from foreign countries with any symptoms should approach the health authorities, she urged.
The Malappuram native came down from Dubai a few days back. He was sick on arrival. Hence he isolated himself from other members of the family. Initially he took treatment at a private hospital and was later shifted to the Manjeri medical college.
The minister said that Mpox treatment and isolation facilities are put in place at government hospitals and medical colleges across the state.
Around 30 Mpox cases are reported in India from July 2022. It is transmitted through prolonged and close contact with an infected patient. It typically manifests itself with fever, rash and swollen lymph nodes and may lead to a range of medical complications.
The Mpox case reported in Malappuram comes close on the heels of a Nipah death being reported from the same district.
(With PTI inputs)
Published 18 September 2024, 13:25 IST