Monkeypox scare: Delhi sees its fourth case, third Nigerian national tests positive; India's tally reaches 9

Delhi on Wednesday reported its fourth case of monkeypox with a 31-year-old Nigerian woman testing positive for the virus, reported news agency ANI. Out of the four confirmed cases reported in the national capital, three are Nigerian nationals. 

The woman has fever and skin lesions and is admitted to Lok Nayak Jai Prakash (LNJP) Hospital, sources said, adding her samples were sent for testing and the results came positive on Wednesday. There is no information about her travelling abroad recently, sources said.

With the latest case, India's overall case tally has reached nine. While four have been reported in Delhi, the other five have been reported in Kerala.  

Yesterday, a 35-year-old foreigner with no recent history of travel, tested positive for Monkeypox in Delhi. The man was admitted to the government-run LNJP Hospital. 

Delhi's first monkeypox case was a 34-year-old man, a resident of Delhi’s Paschim Vihar. While the man had no histpry of foreign travel, he had, however, gone on a holiday to Himachal Pradesh last month with his male friends. He has recovered from the disease and discharged from the hospital. 

In the wake of an increase in the number of Monkeypox cases in the country, isolation rooms have been made operational for treatment of such infections in three central government hospitals, according to sources quoted by ANI. 

"The isolation rooms for the treatment of Monkeypox patients are operational in three major central government hospitals i.e Safdarjang hospital, RML hospital and Lady Hardinge hospital," official sources told ANI. 

The Delhi Government issued the official statement on Tuesday on the preparation of isolation rooms in government and private hospitals. The 20 isolation rooms at the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan (LNJP) Hospital, while 10 isolation rooms have been set up in Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital (GTB) hospital and 10 at Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar Hospital. 

Notably, the Delhi government has also directed private hospitals to create isolation rooms for patients of Monkeypox cases. These three hospitals are Kailash Deepak hospital, East Delhi; MD City Hospital, North Delhi and Batra Hospital and Research Centre, Tughlakabad in South Delhi.

According to the global health body, monkeypox is a viral zoonosis -- a virus transmitted to humans from animals -- with symptoms similar to smallpox although clinically less severe.

The disease typically manifests itself with fever, rash and swollen lymph nodes and may lead to a range of medical complications. It is usually a self-limited disease with symptoms lasting for two to four weeks.

The 'Guidelines on Management of Monkeypox Disease' issued by the Centre, stated that human-to-human transmission occurs primarily through large respiratory droplets generally requiring prolonged close contact.

It can also be transmitted through direct contact with body fluids or lesions, and indirect contact with lesion material such as through contaminated clothing or linen of an infected person. Animal-to-human transmission may occur by bite or scratch of infected animals or through bush meat preparation.

The incubation period is usually six to 13 days and the case fatality rate of monkeypox has historically ranged up to 11 per cent in the general population and higher among children. In recent times, the case fatality rate has been around three to six per cent.

The symptoms include lesions which usually begin within one to three days from the onset of fever, lasting for around two to four weeks and are often described as painful until the healing phase when they become itchy. A notable predilection for palm and soles is characteristic of monkeypox, the guidelines stated.