ISLAMABAD: A 44-year-old man who hails from Punjab’s Gujarat district has tested positive for the monkeypox virus, or mpox, after traveling to Pakistan from the Gulf state, the country’s seventh case of mpox this year and the sixth by the World Health Organization (WHO ). ) declared a state of emergency last month. The patient, who landed at the Islamabad airport on September 14 (Saturday), was taken to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) after he was suspected to be carrying the virus. Health officials confirmed that samples sent to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) were positive for mpox. The patient is said to be in a stable condition. “This is the seventh confirmed case of mpox in Pakistan this year,” said a health official at the federal health ministry. “Five previous cases were confirmed at the Khyber Medical University laboratory in Peshawar, while this latest patient is being treated in Islamabad,” the official said. Mpox is a virus that causes flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions, and while it’s usually mild, it can kill. Children, pregnant women and people with weakened immune systems are all at higher risk of complications. Earlier on Wednesday, another case of mpox was reported in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), bringing the total number of the virus in Pakistan to six, provincial health minister Syed Qasim Ali Shah said. Moreover, on Sunday, at least three passengers traveling to Karachi were suspected of monkeypox in a single day at the Jinnah International Airport, Geo News reported citing sources. All three passengers had returned to Pakistan from Middle Eastern countries, the sources added. Following global health concerns, WHO has approved MVA-BN as the first pre-qualified monkeypox virus vaccine, The News reported on Saturday. “This first prequalification of an mpox vaccine is an important step in our fight against this disease, both in the context of current outbreaks in Africa and in the future,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. The development comes as the UN health body declared the mpox outbreak an “international health emergency” in July. The rise in mpox cases in Peshawar has sparked concern among health professionals and the public alike, with calls for increased awareness and stricter travel guidelines. Authorities continue to closely monitor the situation, especially in light of the recent WHO emergency declaration on the virus, he added, praising the Border Health Services (BHS) for finally detecting a non-Peshawar mpox case.
