Monkeypox in India: Second case detected in Kerala

Thiruvananthapuram: A 31-year-old man who arrived in Kerala last week from Dubai has tested positive for monkeypox, state Health Minister Veena George said.

This is the second case of monkeypox in the state as well as the country.

Also Read:Monkeypox arrives in India, first case reported from Kerala

The minister said the patient, who arrived in Kerala on July 13, was a native of Kannur and was undergoing treatment at the Pariyaram Medical College there.

His health condition is stable, she added.

Medical Dialogues team had earlier published that India's first case of monkeypox has been reported in Kerala with the suspected case which was sent to NIV, Pune has turned positive.

The patient, who tested positive arrived from the UAE on July 12.

Monkeypox is a sylvatic zoonosis with incidental human infections that usually occur sporadically in forested parts of Central and West Africa. It is caused by the monkeypox virus which belongs to the orthopoxvirus family. Monkeypox can be transmitted by contact and droplet exposure via exhaled large droplets.

The incubation period of monkeypox is usually from 6 to 13 days but can range from 5 to 21 days. The disease is often self-limiting with symptoms usually resolving spontaneously within 14 to 21 days.

Symptoms can be mild or severe, and lesions can be very itchy or painful. The animal reservoir remains unknown, although is likely to be among rodents. Contact with live and dead animals through hunting and consumption of wild game or bush meat are known risk factors.

The Union Health Ministry has earlier rushed a high-level multi-disciplinary team to Kerala to collaborate with the state health authorities in instituting public health measures in view of the first confirmed case of monkeypox.

The minister also said that all those who were in close contact with the patient are being closely monitored.

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