Mpox awareness: Key Do's and Don'ts issued by the Union Health Ministry
New Delhi: The Union Health Ministry has released an advisory for all states and union territories on the Mpox disease after India became the third non-African country to report a case of clade 1b Mpox infection recently.
The Department of Health and Family Welfare on September 26 in its advisory has directed that all suspected Mpox cases be isolated and strict infection prevention and control measures be put in place.
It has provided a list of laboratories operationalized for testing. The advisory includes clinical management protocols, infection prevention and control practices, as well as a risk communication strategy.
The Health Ministry stated that the World Health Organisation had on August 14, 2024 announced that the current outbreak of Mpox disease was a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).
This is the second time such Mpox disease associated with PHEIC has been declared by the WHO under the International Health Regulations, 2005, to which India is a signatory.
The ministry has instructed the states to assess public health preparedness at health facilities, with reviews to be conducted by senior officials at both the state and district levels.
Dos:
- Identify isolation facilities for managing suspected and confirmed cases
- Ensure the availability of required logistics and trained human resources
- Isolate all suspected Mpox cases
- Implement strict infection prevention and control measures
- Send samples from skin lesions of suspected Mpox patients to designated laboratories promptly
- Follow symptomatic treatment guidelines as per the advisory
- Assess public health preparedness at health facilities
- Positive sample should be sent to ICMR-NIV for genome sequencing to determine the clade.
Don'ts:
- Do not delay in isolating suspected cases
- Avoid neglecting the implementation of infection prevention measures
- Do not overlook the importance of sending samples for testing and genome sequencing
The Ministry, in its letter, said that as per available information, clinical presentation of Mpox clade I in adults remains similar to clade II. However, the rate of complications may be higher in clade I than with clade II infections. The previous Mpox outbreak that started in 2002 was caused by Mpox virus clade II.
The 2024 PHEIC is related to MPox virus clade I which is more virulent and more transmissible than Mpox clade II, the release further added.
The clade has been found Democratic Republic Of Congo (DRC) only during the current outbreak, and outside Africa, one case each of Mpox clade 1 B has been recently reported from Sweden and Thailand. India is the third non-African country to report a case of 1b Mpox infection recently.
Robust diagnostic testing capability is already available; 36 labs supported by ICMR across the country and three commercial PCR kits validated by ICMR that are now approved by CDSCO, as per the Union Ministry's advisory to states and union territories.
The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said it will continue to monitor the situation closely and we will extend all requisite support in this regard to states and UTs. ANI