Kerala: Youth Who Died In Thrissur Had Monkeypox, NIV Confirms. High-Level Probe On

The deceased youth's relatives had informed the authorities that he tested positive for monkeypox in UAE only on Saturday, said the health minister

Kerala: A 22-year-old youth who died on Saturday in Thrissur had contracted the Monkeypox virus, confirmed the state Health Minister Veena George after his swab samples from the National Institute of Virology (NIV) Pune came back. NIV test results show he tested positive for monkeypox.

Kerala Health minister has informed genomic sequencing is being done at NIV from the sample collected, reported news agency ANI. 

"A young boy returned from UAE on July 22, he was with his family when on July 26 he developed a fever and was admitted on July 27. On July 28 he was moved to a ventilator. He got tested on July 19 for monkeypox in UAE, the result of which was positive," Minister Veena George had informed earlier.

The government has initiated a high-level inquiry into the death of a 22-year-old, who hailed from Payyanur in Kerala's Thrissur district. His relatives had informed the authorities that he tested positive for monkeypox in UAE only on Saturday, said the health minister.

"He had been admitted to a hospital with symptoms of encephalitis and fatigue. His relatives handed over the test result only on Saturday. A high-level probe would be held into the death as monkeypox has a very low fatality rate," the minister was quoted as saying by the Indian Express.

Deaths From Monkeypox Across Globe

Spain on Saturday reported its second death related to monkeypox after the European country's first fatality due to the virus was reported on Friday. Before Spain, Brazil reported the first monkeypox-related death out in Africa and as per World Health Organisation (WHO) since July 22 only five Monkeypox deaths have been reported and all in Africa.

The first fatality in Spain occurred on Friday and the cause of the death was encephalitis, The Guardian reported, quoting the local media report.

The first death related to monkeypox out of Africa in Brazil was a 41-year-old man, who suffered from Lymphoma.

For the first time, Monkeypox cases have been detected in two children in the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) informed, according to the news agency AP.

Monkeypox In India

India has so far reported four monkeypox cases, three in Kerala and one in Delhi. One of the monkeypox patients from Kerala has been discharged from the hospital on Sunday.

After the detection of monkeypox cases in India, the Centre called for strict screening for the influx of passengers at airports and ports.