The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Monday asked all state and Union Territory governments to review public health preparedness, including detection and testing of all suspected cases in the community, after the first suspected case of monkeypox was detected in India on September 8.
Apart from asking states to take measures for surveillance, screening and identification of isolation centres in hospitals, the Ministry of Health has also urged states to collaborate with key stakeholders, especially health workers in dermatology and sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinics. State AIDS control societies have also been asked to remain alert in identifying suspected cases and raising awareness among the community as around half of the cases are reported to be in HIV positive people.
In a letter issued on September 9, Union Health Secretary Apurva Chandra has asked all state and UT administrations to implement the surveillance strategies issued by the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC). These include a list of laboratories where testing can be conducted, clinical management protocols and other communication strategies for infection prevention and control.
The advisory directed senior officials at state and district levels to review public health preparedness at health facilities.
The Ministry also ordered officials to enhance the detection and identification of isolation facilities in hospitals for the care of suspected and confirmed cases, ensuring the availability of necessary logistics and trained personnel, along with a surge plan.
The letter stressed the need to strengthen disease surveillance units at state and district levels under the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) for effective contact tracing and other surveillance activities.
States have also been asked to conduct orientation sessions with key stakeholders, with particular attention to health workers in skin and STD clinics, to help them understand the common signs and symptoms of Mpox, along with differential diagnoses and actions to be taken after detection of a case.
“In addition, considering the epidemiology of the disease, state AIDS control societies are requested to remain on alert to identify suspected cases and raise awareness in the community to promote timely reporting of cases,” the letter adds.
This comes after the World Health Organization (WHO) latest update on Mpox, which suggests that around 51.9 percent of Mpox cases with available information on their HIV status are reported in people living with HIV.
Citing the latest WHO updates, the Ministry of Health added that most of the reported cases worldwide correspond to young men, with a median age of 34 years (range 18-44 years).
“Among the modes of transmission reported globally, sexual contact is the most commonly reported, followed by non-sexual person-to-person contact, with the most common symptom being a rash (including systemic or genital rash), followed by fever,” the ministry added.
The Health Ministry said it continues to closely monitor the evolving situation, even though no new cases of Mpox have been reported in India during the current outbreak, and none of the samples from suspected cases tested at the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune have tested positive.
The central and state governments swung into action after the WHO designated Mpox as a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC), following a surge in cases in African countries last month.
“This decision was taken into account due to the continuously increasing trend of Mpox cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, especially during the last six months, the spread of cases to new countries in East Africa such as Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda, which reported their first Mpox cases, and the emergence of a new clade (mutant variant) of the Mpox virus (Clade Ib),” the ministry said.
First published: September 9, 2024 | 3:00 p.m. IS
Disclaimer
The information contained in this post is for general information purposes only. We make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the post for any purpose.
We respect the intellectual property rights of content creators. If you are the owner of any material featured on our website and have concerns about its use, please contact us. We are committed to addressing any copyright issues promptly and will remove any material within 2 days of receiving a request from the rightful owner.