International travellers showing monkeypox symptoms should be tested

Their samples should be sent to the National Institute of Virology, Pune, says the Director of Public Health

The airports in Chennai, Coimbatore, Tiruchi, Salem, Madurai and Thoothukudi should subject international travellers with the symptoms of fever, headache, muscle aches and exhaustion to sample testing for monkeypox.

Any sick traveller from the affected countries should be isolated and samples should be sent for testing to the Bio-Safety Level-4 Laboratoryof the Indian Council of Medical Research-National Institute of Virology (ICMR-NIV), Pune, through the State Public Health Laboratory, as per the guidelines issued by the Directorate of Public Health (DPH) and Preventive Medicine.

In a separate communication to the Airport Director, Airports Authority of India, and the Deputy Directors of Health Services, Director of Public Health T. S. Selvavinayagam outlined the guidelines to be followed. Any international traveller found to have symptoms should be subjected to sample testing.

As of May 20, monkeypox cases were reported in the U.K., the U.S., Europe, Australia and Canada with no deaths, he said. No case was reported in India; but with fresh cases being detected in various countries, the chances of the disease occurring in India could not be ruled out.

Health facilities should maintain heightened surveillance of people who presented themselves with an unexplained rash, having travelled in the last 21 days to a country that had confirmed or suspected cases of monkeypox or having come in contact with a confirmed case of monkeypox.

All persons with suspected symptoms should be isolated at designated healthcare facilities until lesions are resolved and a fresh layer of skin is formed or until the treating physician decides to end isolation. All such patients should be reported to the District Surveillance Officer of the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme. All infection-control practices should be followed, while laboratory samples of fluid from vesicles, blood and sputum should be sent to the NIV for testing. If a person tests positive, tracing of contacts in the last 21 days has to be initiated immediately.