Prime Minister’s Coordinator for Health Dr Malik Mukhtar Ahmad on Saturday said that the government has formulated a comprehensive strategy to protect the people from mpox and advised the public against worrying.
Mpox, formerly called monkeypox, can spread through close contact. Usually mild, it is fatal in rare cases. It causes flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions on the body.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the recent outbreak of the disease as a public health emergency of international concern on Wednesday after the new variant of the virus was identified.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1852468/explainer-why-is-mpox-an-emergency-again-and-how-worried-should-you-be)
A new form of the virus has triggered global concern because it seems to spread more easily through routine close contact. A case of the new variant was confirmed on Thursday in Sweden and linked to a growing outbreak in Africa, the first sign of its spread outside the continent. Pakistan’s first suspected case was quarantined on Thursday as well as instructions were subsequently issued to enhance monitoring.
Addressing a press conference in Islamabad today, Dr Ahmad said that people need not worry as only one case was reported in the country, adding that surveillance and screening mechanisms were in place at all airports and points of entry.
Dr Ahmad said laboratories were allocated for diagnosis in all provinces and the federal capital. He said cases were reported from Africa and travellers from Africa, America and the Gulf countries would be monitored.
He said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the federal capital and provinces have taken steps on a joint priority basis. Dr Ahmad said the Ministry of Health was ensuring continuous monitoring on a daily basis and the government was also closely monitoring the situation.
He said the ministry was in full contact with the provinces and a daily meeting was being conducted on the prime minister’s instructions. Dr Ahmad appealed to the public to isolate at home if their family had a travel history or mpox symptoms.
Dr Ahmad instructed the public to contact a qualified doctor and follow their instructions in case of showing any symptoms of mpox.
He said that symptoms could take 10 to 15 days to appear and spending too much time with the patient could spread the infection.
“It is better if the patient is quarantined,” he said, adding that fever medicines were used for mpox.
