“The toddler’s samples were taken earlier after she had shown symptoms similar to Monkeypox,” Health and Family Welfare Commissioner said.
Published Jul 17, 2022 | 5:59 PM ⚊ Updated Jul 28, 2022 | 10:45 AM
A two-year-old girl in Andhra Pradesh suspected to be suffering from the monkeypox has been reported negative. (Creative Commons)
Three days after India’s first case of Monkeypox was confirmed in Kerala, a two-year-old girl in Andhra Pradesh suspected to be suffering from the viral zoonotic disease has been reported negative.
“The child was suspected of being infected with Monkeypox, but the National Institute of Virology’s laboratory in Pune has confirmed her test to be negative,” Andhra Pradesh Health and Family Welfare Commissioner J Nivas said.
The commissioner added that as of now there is no case of Monkeypox in the state.
“The child’s samples were taken earlier after she had shown symptoms similar to Monkeypox,” added the commissioner.
He added that the girl along with her family members had been to Dubai for a holiday recently.
“The family returned to the state from Dubai on 11 July,” added the commissioner.
“Her parents had consulted a paediatrician after she had rashes on her body,” added the officer.
Nivas further added that the paediatrician referred her to Old Government General Hospital in Vijayawada for treatment.
“The doctors after examining her immediately admitted her to an isolation ward. The doctors collected sample and sent it to NIV, Pune for the test,” the commissioner added.
The commissioner added that the toddler’s parents and relatives were asked to be in home isolation.
India’s first case of Monkeypox was confirmed in Kerala on 14 July. The man had returned from UAE recently.
The patient is being treated in an isolation ward of a government hospital in Kerala’s capital Thiruvananthapuram.
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on 15 July announced that 15 research and diagnostic laboratories across the country have been trained to test for the virus.
Vasavi Hospital’s consultant dermatologist Dr Abhiram R told South First, “People affected with Monkeypox will have symptoms like rashes usually resembling blisters.”
He added that patients might also complain of fever, tiredness, fatigue, and in some cases vomiting.
Meanwhile, Dr C Rohini, an infectious disease expert with the Government Medical College in Kozhikode in Kerala, said the rashes of Monkeypox could be confused with that of chickenpox, and doctors need to differentiate between them.
