1656684598934_m.jpg)
New Delhi | Jagran News Desk: Following the COVID-19 crisis, the threat of an outbreak of monkeypox is looming over the world as the infection continues to spread its wing across the globe. Till now, 15 countries, mostly European nations, have reported monkeypox cases.
However, this list is expected to rise Argentina has said that it has detected a suspected case of monkeypox in Buenos Aires.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned that cases might rise as it expands surveillance in countries where the disease is not typically found. The top health body has said that it will provide further guidance and recommendations in the coming days for countries on how to mitigate the spread of monkeypox.
It said the identification of confirmed and suspected cases of monkeypox with no direct travel links to an endemic area "represents a highly unusual event".
"No associated deaths have been reported to date. The situation is evolving and WHO expects there will be more cases of monkeypox identified as surveillance expands in non-endemic countries," the WHO said.
Belgium makes 21-day quarantine compulsory for monkeypox patients
With a rise in monkeypox cases, Belgium has become the first country to make a 21-day quarantine compulsory for such patients. Taking to Twitter, the microbiologist Emmanuel Andre, who is in charge of the National Reference lab for COVID-19 in Belgium on Saturday, said that the fourth case has been confirmed in the country.
"This patient is being treated in Wallonia and is linked to the Antwerp event in which two other people were infected," he tweeted, referring to a festival in the port city held in May.
What is India's preparation?
India, meanwhile, has directed the National Centre for Disease Control and the ICMR to keep a close watch on the situation. The Union Health Ministry has also directed airport and port health officers to be vigilant.
"They have been instructed that any sick passenger with a travel history to Monkeypox-affected countries be isolated and samples sent to the BSL4 facility of the National Institute of Virology in Pune for an investigation," news agency PTI quoted official sources as saying.
"The Union Health Minister on Thursday directed the National Centre for Disease Control and the ICMR to keep a close watch and monitor the situation in India," they added.