ICMR conducting serosurvey to assess mpox risk in India
WHO declares Mpox a global public health emergency; ‘coordinated international response essential,’ says DG Tedros Mpox is a self-limiting viral zoonotic infection (spreading between animals and humans) with symptoms like smallpox, but with less clinical severity. It causes painful skin lesions, fever, headaches and muscle aches. Human-to-human transmission occurs mainly through large respiratory droplets requiring prolonged close contact.
It can also be passed on through direct contact with body fluids or lesion material, and indirect contact with lesion material such as through contaminated clothing or linens of an infected person. No new cases have been reported in India since the fresh outbreak in Congo. Till 24 July last year, 31 confirmed cases of mpox disease were detected in India, including 12 in Kerala and 15 in Delhi.
Queries emailed to the health ministry spokesperson remained unanswered till going to the press. In June 2022, ICMR researchers isolated the first strain of monkeypox—the WHO later began referring to it as “mpox" to reduce stigma around the disease—and invited expressions of interest from pharmaceutical companies and in-vitro diagnostic kit manufacturers to help develop a vaccine and testing kits for the virus. “Serum Institute of India is working on an Mpox vaccine," the scientist quoted earlier said.
Read more | Mpox: Key facts about monkeypox virus and how it transmits Most cases detected till date have been mild and treatment for the disease remains largely supportive. According to the WHO, investigational drugs are used in some countries in clinical research settings only. “The new mpox strain found in eastern Congo is not found in India right now," a scientist at National Institute of
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