Officials from health department heaved a sigh of relief as the first suspected monkeypox case, which was reported in Visakhapatnam three days ago, turned out to be negative.
A 23-year-old medico from a private college, who had a travel history to Hyderabad had reportedly shown some suspected symptoms of monkeypox on Friday. The Health Department as well as the district administration was alerted. Initially, the youth was isolated in the private hospital. A rapid response team from King George Hospital with specialist doctors collected samples and sent them to the Virology Lab in Pune on Saturday.
District Medical & Health Officer K. Vijayalakshmi said that the test report had arrived on Monday night and it was negative. She added that the youth would be discharged from hospital on Wednesday.
