Mpox crisis: New cases reported in Pakistan, Peshawar a potential 'epicenter'
mpox
Pakistan's Peshawar is emerging as the potential 'epicentre' of mpox disease, a top health official in the South Asian nation said, over two weeks after the World Health Organization declared it an emergency of international concern.
The country, mired under militancy and terrorism due to decades of support by Islamabad among other challenges, reported the second case of mpox on Sunday (Sept1), taking the total number of cases to five, the country's Dawn publication reported.
"This is the fifth case reported this year [in Pakistan] and the fourth since WHO declared mpox a global health emergency," Federal Director General of Health Dr Shabana Saleem said on Sunday (Sept1).
"Peshawar appears to be turning into an epicentrefor mpox cases," she added.
Also read | Mpox crisis:UN still in vaccine tender mode amid thousands of suspected new infections in Africa
All other cases have been reported from the predominantly tribal Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which shares a porous international boundary with Afghanistan with virtually free movement of goods and people, mostly of Pashtun origins.
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The cases have stoked fears of its spread in neighbouring Afghanistan as well, where the health facilities have worsened since August 2021 when Taliban extremists stormed to power.
Pakistan mpox crisis: What's the situation?
According to Pakistan's National Health Services (NHS) Ministry spokesperson Sajid Shah, the latest patient is a 47-year-old man who entered the country from an unnamed Gulf nation on August 29.
A resident of Peshawar, the provincial capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the man was reportedly isolated by the Border Health Services at the Bacha Khan International Airport for showing symptoms akin to the mpox crisis.
Also watch |Mpox in Africa: New MPOX strain stirs public health emergency in Africa
Earlier on Thursday (Aug28), a 51-year-old man who returned from Saudi Arabia was isolated in Peshawar for a similar reason. His test samples sent to Khyber Medical University returned positive, Pakistan's Dawn publication reported.
Pakistan has not yet reported any local transmission of mpox as all four patients entered the country from abroad and were isolated from the airports.