The first case of monkeypox in India has been suspected and reported in Kerala, the person has arrived from United Arab Emirates (UAE), the state health minister said on Thursday.
The samples have been sent to the Pune Virology Institute for examination. The minister said the disease could be confirmed only after getting the test results.
The traveler who arrived in Kerala three days ago from the UAE was hospitalized after he displayed symptoms of monkeypox and was in contact with a patient abroad.
According to World Health Organization (WHO), monkeypox is a viral zoonosis, which means 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.
Monkeypox is transmitted to humans through close contact with an infected person or animal, or with material contaminated with the virus.
It is usually a self-limited disease with symptoms lasting from two to four weeks, WHO said. Monkeypox virus is transmitted from one person to another by close contact with lesions, body fluids, respiratory droplets, and contaminated materials such as bedding.