Another Nigerian national tests positive for monkeypox in Delhi, tally rises to 3 in the capital

As reported by the Indian Express, a Nigerian national (31-year-old) living in Delhi tested positive for monkeypox on Tuesday, taking the city’s total cases to three. Two of the three persons from Nigeria, who were admitted to Delhi’s Lok Nayak Hospital on Sunday and Monday, have tested positive for monkeypox to date.

A 35-year-old Nigerian national, living in Delhi for more than a year, tested positive for the infection on Monday. Both the Nigerian nationals who tested positive for the infection worked at restaurants in the city, officials stated.

Union health minister Mansukh Mandaviya in Parliament said on Tuesday that eight cases of monkeypox have been detected in the country so far, of which five have a history of foreign travel. They have travelled from Dubai or Sharjah. 

He added that however, we are seeing and have seen during the Covid-19 pandemic that some people go unnoticed and enter the country even after thermal screening because they consume paracetamols. We have written to the Dubai government asking them to conduct tracing and share the reports with us so that we can monitor them.

Under the supervision of NITI Aayog member (health) Dr VK Paul, the Centre has established a task force to monitor the situation of the viral infection in the country. The task force includes officials from the health ministry, pharmaceutical and biotechnology departments.

Monkeypox is a self-limiting viral infection that spreads by close skin-to-skin, mouth-to-mouth or sexual contact with a person having pox-like lesions. It can also be transmitted through infected materials like linens. Big respiratory droplets can also cause infection if a person has extended close contact with an infected person.

The most common symptoms of monkeypox comprise fever, headache, muscle ache, back pain, low energy and swollen lymph nodes, in addition to pox-like rashes that continue for two to three weeks. It is a self-limiting disease but can be fatal, especially among children and those with weak immunity. Pneumonia, secondary skin infections, confusion and eye diseases are some of the complications of monkeypox infection.

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