KARACHI: At least three passengers traveling to Karachi were suspected of monkeypox in a single day at the Jinnah International Airport. All the three passengers were returning to Pakistan from Middle Eastern countries, the sources added. According to insiders, all three passengers have been taken to the Sindh Government Hospital for Infectious Diseases and will be kept in isolation pending the test report. The total number of confirmed mpox cases in Pakistan is six, with the majority of cases reported in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. 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, Reuters reported. In August, the World Health Organization declared the recent outbreak a public health emergency of international concern after a new variant was identified. Since the beginning of the current epidemic in January 2023, 27,000 cases and more than 1,100 deaths, mainly among children, have been recorded in the DR Congo.
