Suspected mpox case under probe, no cause for alarm: Govt

A man who recently travelled from a country experiencing mpox transmission has been identified as a suspected case of the disease, the Union health ministry said on Sunday.

The patient has been isolated at a designated hospital and is currently stable, it said, adding that there is no cause for concern.

Samples have been collected from the man and are being tested to confirm the presence of mpox.

"The case is being managed in line with established protocols, and contact tracing is ongoing to identify potential sources and assess the impact within the country," the ministry said.

The development of this case is consistent with the earlier risk assessment conducted by the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and there is no cause of any undue concern, it said.

The country is fully prepared to deal with such isolated travel-related cases and has robust measures in place to manage and mitigate any potential risk, the ministry added.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) declared mpox a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) for the second time last month in view of its prevalence and spread across many parts of Africa.

Since the 2022 declaration of PHEIC by WHO, 30 mpox cases have been reported in India. The last case of mpox was detected in March this year.