‘Mpox patient’s health is improving, no need to panic’, said LNJP Medical Director Suresh Kumar

The health of the Mpox (Monkey Pox) patient admitted in LNJP Hospital of the country’s capital Delhi is improving rapidly. The hospital’s medical director Suresh Kumar said that there is no need to panic. He said that Mpox is a DNA virus and its rashes usually appear in the form of maculopapular lesions on the palms, soles and skin, which are quite large, these can also develop into ulcerated rashes and large lesions on the skin.

The Union Home Ministry confirmed the ampox case on Monday and said that the patient is a young male who had recently travelled from an ampox-infected country and is currently in isolation. The patient is medically stable and has no comorbidities.

The ministry said this is an isolated case, similar to the 30 cases reported in India before July 2022. It is not currently part of a global health emergency, which relates to clade 1 of ampox.

Last month, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared ampox a public health emergency for the second time given its widespread spread in many parts of Africa.

Let us tell you that the 26-year-old patient, a resident of Hisar in Haryana, was admitted to the Delhi government-run LNJP hospital on September 7. Then the Home Ministry had said that this case is in line with the earlier risk assessment and its management is continuing as per the protocol. It also said that all public health measures including contact tracing and monitoring are actively implemented to control the situation.

The central government has issued an advisory to all states and union territories regarding the global ampox outbreak, urging all officials to take appropriate precautions and provide information about the symptoms and prevention of ampox. This warning has been given at a time when the new strain of ampox is spreading rapidly across the world, due to which WHO has had to declare it a global health emergency for the second time in two years.