Pakistan registers first Mpox case – DW – 16.08.2024

As of Friday, at least one case of the contagious Mpox virus had been detected in Pakistan, health authorities said, but were unable to clarify which variant of the virus it was.

“The first case of Mpox has been confirmed in Pakistan,” said a health ministry spokesman.

Cases of MPOX have been reported in previous outbreaks in Pakistan.

But the news comes a day after Sweden said it had discovered the first case of a more dangerous strain of Mpox outside the African continent.

The World Health Organization declared a global public health emergency on Wednesday after an outbreak of the viral infection in the Democratic Republic of Congo spread to neighboring African countries.

According to the local health department, up to 3 cases of MPOX have been detected

The local health department in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province reported up to three cases identified in patients who had entered Pakistan from the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Salim Khan, director general of health services in the province, said two patients had been confirmed to have Mpox, while samples from a third patient had been sent to the National Institute of Health in the capital Islamabad for confirmation.

He added that all three patients were in quarantine.

Since the current outbreak began in January 2023, there have been 27,000 cases and more than 1,100 deaths in Africa, mostly among children.

More to follow…

mf/rm (Reuters, AFP)