Veena George said they will also be examining why there was delay in his hospitalisation after he arrived here from UAE on July 21.
Kerala Health Minister Veena George on Sunday said that the youth who died in Thrissur district on Saturday had tested positive for monkeypox in another country. If confirmed, this would be India’s first monkeypox death and fourth one outside Africa.
George also said that the state health department will examine the reasons behind the death of the 22-year-old. With the swab results of the deceased patient yet to be reported, the health minister said that the patient was young, did not suffer from any other illness or health problems and therefore, the health department was looking into the cause of his death.
She said they will also be examining why there was delay in his hospitalisation after he arrived here from UAE on July 21.
The minister also said that the youth had been diagnosed with monkeypox in a test conducted abroad, but his family members handed over the test results to the hospital authorities only on Saturday.
"The youth had no symptoms of monkeypox. He had been admitted to the hospital with symptoms of encephalitis and fatigue. His relatives handed over the test result only on Saturday. A high-level probe would be held into the death as monkeypox has a very low fatality rate," George said.
"This particular variant of monkeypox is not as highly virulent or contagious like COVID-19, but it does spread. Comparatively, the mortality rate of this variant is low. Therefore, we will examine why the 22-year-old man died in this particular case as he had no other illness or health problems," the minister told media.
Since this variant of monkeypox does spread, therefore, all necessary measures have to be taken and have been taken to prevent the same, she added.
The minister also said that there were no studies available about this particular variant from other countries where the disease has been detected and thus, Kerala was carrying out a study on it.
The 22-year-old man died on Saturday morning at a private hospital in Thrissur allegedly due to monkeypox.
According to WHO, monkeypox is a viral zoonosis (a virus transmitted to humans from animals), with symptoms similar to those seen in the past in smallpox patients, although it is clinically less severe.
With the eradication of smallpox in 1980 and subsequent cessation of smallpox vaccination, monkeypox has emerged as the most important orthopoxvirus for public health.
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