Monkeypox scare! 5-year-old Ghaziabad girl's samples sent for testing as precautionary step

Ghaziabad: The Chief Medical Officer of UP has stated that the girl's samples were tested for monkeypox as a precautionary measure.

Pic Credit: File Photo

New Delhi: A 5-year-old girl from Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh has been suspected to have monkeypox disease after she complained of itching and rashes on her body. Her samples were taken for testing recently as reported by ANI. The Chief Medical Officer further said that the little girl doesn't have any other health issues and has not had close contact with anyone who travelled abroad in the past 1 month.

UP | Samples of a 5-yr-old girl collected for testing for #monkeypox, as a precautionary measure, as she had complaints of itching & rashes on her body. She has no other health issues & neither she nor any of her close contact travelled abroad in the past 1 month: CMO Ghaziabad

— ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) June 4, 2022

The testing is merely a precautionary measure and nothing has been confirmed yet. As of now, there have been zero monkeypox cases in India. On the other hand, the outbreak is on a rise in European countries which is quite unusual. Thirty non-endemic countries have reported more than 550 confirmed cases of monkeypox, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on June 2.

A week ago, the Uttar Pradesh health department had issued an advisory for health officials to follow the standard operating procedures when dealing with monkeypox infection.

In view of the increasing reports of Monkeypox (MPX) cases in non-endemic countries, India`s Health Ministry on Tuesday acted proactively and issued `Guidelines on Management of Monkeypox Disease` to ensure advance preparedness across the country.

(With agency inputs)