Pakistan's health ministry confirms one case of Mpox, but further tests for variant underway – Chicago Tribune

PESHAWAR, Pakistan – Pakistan's health ministry said Friday it had identified a case of Mpox but that sequencing was underway to determine if it was a new variant. Just days earlier, the World Health Organization declared the spread of Mpox a global health emergency.

The case, involving a man who had recently returned from a Middle Eastern country, is the first in Pakistan this year, but the type of variant had yet to be determined. The first case was reported by authorities in Sweden on Thursday.

A statement from the ministry said the man was from Mardan, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan.

It said the ministry had instructed officials at border crossings and airports to ensure strict surveillance and take samples for medical tests if they detect symptoms of the disease in a passenger returning from abroad.

It was unclear which Middle Eastern country the man had visited, and no cases of the new variant have been reported in that region so far. However, the United Arab Emirates has had 16 confirmed cases of Mpox since 2022, according to the WHO. The UAE is particularly vulnerable to cross-border outbreaks because it acts as a hub between East and West with its long-haul airlines Emirates and Etihad.

On Wednesday, the WHO announced that there had been more than 14,000 cases and 524 deaths in Africa this year, already more than last year's figures. More than 96 percent of all cases and deaths occurred in Congo.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Health Director Dr. Irshad Roghani said the person infected with Mpox in Pakistan had only mild symptoms. “Contact tracing of the affected person has been initiated and samples are being taken from additional people,” he told the Associated Press.

Roghani said that 300 people have been tested in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa since 2022, of which two tested positive last year. This is the first case detected this year.

Originally published: August 16, 2024 at 8:12 am