 "Arvind Kejriwal")
With Delhi reporting its first monkeypox case, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday said an isolation ward for such patients has been set up at the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Hospital and there is no need to panic.
The Lok Nayak Jai Prakash (LNJP) Hospital, which was the nerve centre of the national capital's fight against COVID-19, also constituted a 20-member team comprising dermatologists, physicians, doctors of different specialities, nurses, orderlies and technicians.
The 34-year-old patient from west Delhi is recovering at the designated isolation centre at the LNJP Hospital.
In a tweet, Kejriwal said, "The patient is stable and recovering. There is no need to panic. The situation is under control. We have made a separate isolation ward at LNJP. Our best team is on the case to prevent the spread and protect Delhiites."
Sources said the condition of the man, the first case of monkeypox reported in the capital, is "stable" though he had painful lesions, one of the symptoms of monkeypox, along with fever for five days.
Efforts are on to trace other people he may have come in contact with, they said, adding though the man has no history of international travel, he did attend a stag party in Manali in Himachal Pradesh recently.
"He was running a temperature of 100 degrees Celsius for five days and was treated with lotions for the lesions. We also analysed his condition and ruled out several other ailments," a source said.
"Covid is highly transmissible, and a person even standing near an infected person can contract it via sneezing and droplets. Monkeypox is also communicable, but if proper distance is maintained and people wear masks, it won't spread that fast. So, I urge people to follow all safety protocols as they were doing to keep COVID-19 at bay," the source said.
Monkeypox infection is treated with lotions and fever medications and if there is any blood infection or viral pneumonia, adequate medications are administered.
With Delhi's first reported case of monkeypox, the tally of such cases in India has risen to four. Earlier, three monkeypox cases were reported in Kerala.
Dr Satish Koul, Director of Internal Medicine at Fortis Memorial Research Institute advised people to exercise caution if they come in contact with someone who has monkeypox.
"It spreads by close contact, skin-to-skin contact and droplet infection. So, we have to be careful about all these factors. We have to understand that this is a viral disease. The total duration of this viral disease is around three to four weeks," he added.
Elaborating on the symptoms, he said the infection manifests itself in the form of fever, body aches, headache and enlarged lymph nodes of the neck. Subsequently, the patient will develop rashes on the face and palms and later on the hands and legs, the doctor said.
"If you have a fever, a history of travel recently or you have come in contact with somebody who has manifested symptoms of monkeypox, you should immediately consult your physician," he added.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Saturday declared monkeypox a global public health emergency of international concern. Globally, over 16,000 cases of monkeypox have been reported from 75 countries and there have been five deaths so far.
The 'Guidelines on Management of Monkeypox Disease' issued by the Centre stated that human-to-human transmission occurs primarily through large respiratory droplets generally requiring prolonged close contact.
It can also be transmitted through direct contact with body fluids or lesions, and indirect contact with lesion material such as through contaminated clothing or linen of an infected person. Animal-to-human transmission may occur by bite or scratch of infected animals or through bush meat preparation.
In the WHO South-East Asia Region, besides India, one case has been detected in Thailand.
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