According to sources and officials, a World Health Organisation (WHO) delegation visited the airports in Karachi and Islamabad on Thursday. They expressed satisfaction with the preventive steps implemented to stop the spread of monkeypox.
The WHO team, led by the nation’s medical director Dr. Palitha Gunarathna Mahipala, visited several lounges at both airports. Where they were informed of the measures taken by the government. The team went to the airport’s international arrival/boarding bridges, as well as the corridor and immigration desks.
Later, the team expressed satisfaction with the precautions taken by the Karachi airport administration against monkeypox, according to the sources. The manager of the airport in Islamabad acknowledged that the visiting team was pleased with the facilities.
The National Institute of Health (NIH) in Pakistan’s capital Islamabad verified two cases of mpox last month. Both patients have now recovered fully from being isolated. The NIH claimed that Pakistan did not have any proof of localised viral illness transmission.
The global health organisation deemed mpox, which spreads through intimate contact, a global health emergency in July 2022. In November, the organisation remained on high alert.
The WHO has said that a cutaneous rash or mucosal lesions, which can last 2-4 weeks. And are accompanied by fever, headache, muscle aches, back discomfort, low energy. Also swollen lymph nodes, are the common symptoms of monkeypox or mpox.
The WHO replaced the word monkeypox with mpox on November 28 of last year out of concern for the name’s potential for stigma and prejudice. To prevent the virus from spreading throughout the nation, the Pakistani government has placed the health departments on high alert and implemented specific SOPs.
In order to prevent the entry of people carrying the mpox virus into the country, health authorities have also reactivated “COVID-19 protocols” at all entry points, including international airports, while special attention is being paid to the screening of hundreds of Pakistanis deported from different countries on a monthly basis.
The WHO promised last week to help Pakistan as needed to keep the monkeypox virus under control. The organisation stated in a statement that as the situation changed, it has been working with Pakistan’s government to investigate the virus’s spread.
The WHO has promised to help the government, particularly with lab testing, entrance ports, and sending testing kits.
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