Keep watch, send sick travellers’ samples from Monkeypox-affected nations to NIV: Govt to officials
India Today
The Union health ministry has instructed airport and port authorities that any sick passenger with a travel history to Monkeypox-affected countries be isolated and samples sent to the National Institute of Virology.
Amid Monkeypox cases being reported from some countries, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya has directed the National Centre for Disease Control and the ICMR to keep a close watch on the situation, official sources said Friday.
The Union health ministry has also directed airport and port health officers to be vigilant, they said.
"They have been instructed that any sick passenger with a travel history to Monkeypox-affected countries be isolated and samples sent to the BSL4 facility of the National Institute of Virology in Pune for an investigation," an official source said.
He added, "The Union Health Minister on Thursday directed the National Centre for Disease Control and the ICMR to keep a close watch and monitor the situation in India."
Cases of Monkeypox have been reported from the UK, the USA, Portugal, Spain, and some other European countries.
In humans, the symptoms of Monkeypox are similar to but milder than those of smallpox.
According to the WHO, Monkeypox typically manifests in humans with fever, rashes and swollen lymph nodes and may lead to a range of medical complications.
