HFH resends sample to NIH for confirmation

Rawalpindi:The Department of Infectious Diseases at Holy Family Hospital has opted to repeat test of a patient who was tested positive for monkeypox by the National Institute of Health Islamabad on Saturday. The patient, a 28-year old male has been undergoing treatment at the DID since Friday.

Mobeen son of Riasat who is a resident of a village near Mehmoodabad Chowk in Tehsil Gujar Khan, Rawalpindi district is the first confirmed case of monkeypox reported at the allied hospitals in town.

The hospital has decided to repeat test of the patient and for the purpose, his sample has been sent to the laboratory, said Head of DID at HFH Professor Dr. Muhammad Mujeeb Khan while talking to ‘The News’ on Monday. He added the patient is medically stable and out of danger.

The patient was admitted to Department of Infectious Diseases at HFH on Friday with the history of fever for seven days and appearance of rash for four days. The rash first appeared on his face and then on upper half of the trunk. Doctors at the HFH also observed few lesions in the groin area of his body. After confirmation of the patient as a positive case of Mpox by the NIH, the hospital has notified the district health department of the case, said Dr. Mujeeb.

It is important that monkeypox is primarily a zoonotic disease, transmitted from animals to humans but human-to-human transmission can also occur, particularly through close contact (talking, breathing, touching) with infected individuals. This can occur through respiratory droplets or contact with skin lesions. The virus can also be transmitted through contact with contaminated clothing or bedding. The virus may enter the body through broken skin and mucosal surfaces or via the respiratory tract.

The 28-year old patient did not have any history of animal handling however he had a travel history of KSA. He went to KSA on May 21 this year and after performing Umrah there, he returned home on August 8. The patient is a known case of darier disease, an inherited skin disorder characterized by wart-like blemishes on the body, for 15 years with non-compliance of oral medication from dermatology department, said Professor Mujeeb and added the patient is medically and hemodynamically stable.

It is important that the most common symptoms of monkeypox include fever, sore throat, headache, muscle aches, back pain, low energy, swollen lymph nodes, and a rash that starts as a flat sore and develops into a blister filled with liquid, which may be itchy or painful. The rash can appear anywhere on the body and can range from a few to hundreds of lesions.