Written By: Satata Karmakar | Updated : August 1, 2022 10:27 AM IST
First Monkeypox Death In India: Kerala Youth Had Tested Positive Abroad, Probe Ordered
A 22-year-old man who had returned died in Kerala's Thrissur on Saturday had tested positive for monkeypox infection abroad, state's Health Minister Veena George said. "A probe has been initiated and proper investigation is underway", said officials. This would be India's first death due to the monkeypox infection and the fourth one outside Africa. Speaking to the media, Veena George said, "This particular variant of monkeypox is not as highly virulent or contagious as COVID-19, but it does spread. Comparatively, the mortality rate of this variant is low."
Doctors who treated the patient said the youth had symptoms which were very similar to monkeypox. Speaking to the media, the doctors said, "There were no red marks or blisters when he got admitted. But later such symptoms started appearing on his body," He further added, "Since he came from the high-risk UAE, he was admitted to an isolation ward."
This comes days after the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared monkeypox infection as a global health threat. According to WHO, monkeypox is a viral zoonosis (a virus transmitted to humans from animals), with symptoms similar to those seen in the past in smallpox patients, although it is clinically less severe. Experts believe that with the eradication of smallpox in 1980 and the subsequent cessation of smallpox vaccination, monkeypox has emerged as the most important orthopox virus for public health.
(With inputs from agencies)
