The world has already suffered a lot due to COVID-19 pandemic which causes a severe destruction to humankind. If we talk about India, it was in the second spot in the list of the countries with highest cases of COVID-19.
Our country lost many of its people to never-seen-before disease, especially in the second wave of COVID-19. Later, as the vaccination started in the country, we controlled the effect of the third wave, and the cases slowly started decreasing.
Now, there is bad news for us that we have reported the country’s first ever monkeypox case on Thursday, a few days after the World Health Organization held an emergency meeting to decide if Monkeypox is a global health threat.
India Reports Its First Monkeypox Case
On Thursday, July 14, 2022, India reported its first case of Monkeypox in its Southern state, Kerala, after the sample of the man who returned from the United Arab Emirates returned four days ago was hospitalized showing signs of virus, tested positive.
Earlier in the day, Kerala Health Minister Veena George said that the man’s sample has been collected and sent for testing to National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune, Maharashtra. The man, tested positive, was in close contact with the patient abroad and he has been isolated and kept under close observation.
What is Monkeypox?
It is a zoonotic disease mostly transmitted to people from wild animals such as rodents and primates, the Human-to-Human transmission is also possible and the Keral case is the example of it.
From the past few years, we have witnessed that the disease once limited to Africa only, is now being found in several European and other nations. It is a rare disease similar to other poxviruses such as the virus that leads to smallpox.
How Does It Spread?
Monkeypox spreads by direct exposure to the infected animal resulting from a scratch, bite or contact with their wound or bodily secretion directly or indirectly. However, the results that are being reported globally are the results of human-to-human transmission. Also, the sexual intercourse can lead to an outbreak.
Monkeypox Symptoms
It belongs to the same virus family as smallpox but could cause milder symptoms, however it doesn’t immediately show symptoms and the incubation period for the virus is said to be between 7 to 21 days.
Most patients only experience fever, body aches, chills, headache and fatigue while the people with more serious illness may develop a rash and lesions on the face and hand that can spread to other parts of the body.
It is believed that most of the people recover within about two to four weeks without needing to be hospitalized. It can be fatal for up to one in ten people and is thought to be more severe in children.
The people exposed to the virus are often isolated and given one of the several smallpox vaccines, which have been shown to be effective against monkeypox. Some anti-virus drugs are also being developed to cure the disease.
