PESHAWAR: The mpox virus strain infecting a patient in Mardan district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, has been identified through genetic sequencing as 'Clade 2B,' originating
in West Africa and spreading globally in 2022.
This update was provided by Dr. Irshad Roghani, Director of Public Health KP, during a Provincial Outbreak Committee meeting chaired recently by Minister for Health, Syed Qasim Ali Shah.
Dr Roghani said that all the three confirmed mpox cases in the province have been linked to travel outside Pakistan.
The meeting was attended by key officials, including Director General Health Dr. Muhammad Saleem, Additional Director General Administration Dr. Siraj, and representatives of Border Health Services, WHO, and other relevant departments.
Dr. Roghani said mpox was first reported in 1970 in the Democratic Republic of Congo and previously confined to Central and West Africa before its significant global spread in 2022. To date, Asia has reported 3,527 cases.
In response to the outbreak, he said, a provincial control room has been established at the Directorate General of Health Services, with rapid response teams now operational. District outbreak committees are also setting up control rooms locally, he added.
Health Minister Syed Qasim Ali Shah urged the public to maintain social distancing and exercise caution in social interactions.
He called on the media to help raise awareness about mpox to protect the community. The rapid response teams have been mobilized, and isolation wards are being established across districts, he added.
The minister also noted that the recent mpox patient had been involved in an accident abroad on August 3, returned to Pakistan on August 10, and sought treatment at Khyber Teaching Hospital for a broken leg. When skin symptoms were observed, the patient was isolated, and samples were sent to the Public Health Reference Laboratory for testing.
Mr Shah said that advisories, guidelines, and case management protocols are being issued to healthcare staff across the province. Screening facilities have been set up at Bacha Khan International Airport and Torkham border, with isolation wards being established in district-level DHQ hospitals and private hospitals notified.
An isolation ward has also been set up at MTI Mardan in response to the current case. Screening efforts at Bacha Khan International Airport have covered over 10,000 passengers from 83 flights, and more than 5,000 passengers at the Torkham border have been screened.
The meeting also focused on mpox symptoms and case management protocols for healthcare providers, emphasizing active monitoring and contact tracing through the Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) system.