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The 2022 monkeypox outbreak in Asia is a part of the outbreak of human monkeypox caused by the West African clade of the monkeypox virus. The outbreak reached Asia on 21 May 2022 when Israel reported their first case of Monkeypox.

Background

Mpox (/ˈɛmpɒks/, EM-poks; formerly known as monkeypox) is an infectious viral disease that can occur in humans and other animals. Symptoms include a rash that forms blisters and then crusts over, fever, and swollen lymph nodes. The illness is usually mild, and most infected individuals recover within a few weeks without treatment. The time from exposure to the onset of symptoms ranges from three to seventeen days, and symptoms typically last from two to four weeks. However, cases may be severe, especially in children, pregnant women, or people with suppressed immune systems.

The disease is caused by the monkeypox virus, a zoonotic virus in the genus Orthopoxvirus. The variola virus, which causes smallpox, is also in this genus. Human-to-human transmission can occur through direct contact with infected skin or body fluids, including sexual contact. People remain infectious from the onset of symptoms until all the lesions have scabbed and healed. The virus may spread from infected animals through handling infected meat or via bites or scratches. Diagnosis can be confirmed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing a lesion for the virus's DNA.

An ongoing outbreak of monkeypox was confirmed on 6 May 2022, beginning with a British resident who, after travelling to Nigeria (where the disease is endemic), presented symptoms consistent with monkeypox on 29 April 2022. The resident returned to the United Kingdom on 4 May, creating the country's index case of the outbreak. The origin of several of the cases of monkeypox in the United Kingdom is unknown. Some monitors saw community transmission taking place in the London area as of mid-May, but it has been suggested that cases were already spreading in Europe in the previous months.

History

Imported cases before the outbreak

According to the World Health Organization, imported cases of Monkeypox from Nigeria was detected in Israel and Singapore in September 2018 and May 2019, respectively. Although the number cases were not published.

Arrival

As the outbreak was spreading in Europe in the middle of May 2022, the Israeli Health Ministry reported the first case of Monkeypox in the country on 21 May, which also became the first in Asia. The 30-year-old man returned from Western Europe and contracted the disease from there. The ministry reported that he was in isolation in the Ichilov General Hospital in Tel Aviv.

Cases transitted through Asia

On May and June 2022, two Australians tested positive for monkeypox in Australia, but before that they stayed in transit in airports for some hours in Southeast Asia.

On 29 May, Thai health authorities confirmed that a Australian who stayed in Thailand in transit for 2 hours tested positive for monkeypox in Australia.

Responses

Organizations

Nations

•  Bangladesh: On 22 May, the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) issued warnings at every port in the country to prevent the spread of monkeypox. The Directorate spokesperson Nazmul Islam said that the DGHS has asked all air, land and sea ports to be alert. Suspected cases are instructed to be sent to an infectious disease hospital and kept in isolation.
•  India: Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya directed the National Centre for Disease Control and the ICMR to keep a close watch and monitor the situation. The Union Health Ministry has also directed airport and port health officers to be vigilant, according to official sources. They have been instructed to isolate and send samples to the National Institute of Virology of any sick passenger with a travel history to infected countries.
•  Indonesia: When cases of monkeypox were reported in Australia in May 2022, they triggered the alert of health authorities in Indonesia. Mohammad Syahril, ministry spokesperson, urged medical personnel and the country's population to be alert and aware of the symptoms of the disease.
•  Malaysia: On May 27, 2022, the Malaysian Ministry of Health reactivated the MySejahtera app to provide information and surveillance on monkeypox.
•  Philippines: Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said that the Philippines was intensifying its border control measures amid the threat of the monkeypox virus. The health department stated it is exploring potential sources of monkeypox vaccines and antivirals.
•  Saudi Arabia: On May 21, the Saudi Ministry of Health stated that they are ready to monitor and investigate cases of monkeypox, if any occurs. They added that it also has an integrated preventive plan to deal with such cases if they appear, including identifying suspected and confirmed cases.
•  Thailand: On 24 May 2022, the Department of Disease Control (DDC) started screening all overseas passengers from Central African countries and other outbreak countries at international airports. On 26 May 2022, the DDC set up an emergency operations center to monitor the outbreak situation and plan for a possible outbreak in the kingdom. Anutin Charnvirakul, Minister of Public Health, said that the government is seeking a smallpox vaccine from the WHO to bolster the public's immunity in case of a viral outbreak. On 30 May 2022, The local news reported the first case of monkeypox in the country. The patient was a passenger who was transiting from Europe to Australia via Bangkok. However, the patient's symptoms developed and were diagnosed in Australia. There have been no local cases discovered as of yet.
•  Vietnam: On May 24, 2022, Vietnam's Ministry of Health asked border localities to increase surveillance to detect possible cases of monkeypox.

Outbreak by regions and countries

Middle East

Israel

United Arab Emirates

South Asia

Afghanistan

On 29 May, the Islamic Republic News Agency and other news agencies reported two suspected cases of monkeypox who came back from Iran in Nimruz Province citing local newspapers and the Ministry of Health and provincial health authorities.

On 31 May, ministry spokesperson Javid Hazhir stated that suspected cases in Nimruz, Kabul and Herat provinces tested negative. He also stated that the Emirate has the capability to test monkeypox cases.

On 5 May, it was reported that WHO will give test kits to the Taliban-controlled Ministry of Public Health, as they were lacking kits. Ministry spokesperson stated that suspected cases in Maidan Wardak and Nangarhar provinces along with other provinces which were stated earlier tested negative and the country is free of Monkeypox.

Bangladesh

Bangladeshi health authorities declared alert on every ports in the country in mid-May. Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka was in high alert.

On 7 June, a 32-year-old Turkish citizen was detected with monkeypox symptoms on the airport while screening. He was taken to the Infectious Diseases Hospital in Dhaka's Mohakhali and isolated. Although, on the same day the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare published a press release denying reports of the monkeypox virus 'confirmed' in a foreigner.

On the next day, the DGHS director stated that he investigated the Turkish cirizen himself, and his symptoms were not of monkeypox's, and he was suffering from a skin disease for a long time.

On 9 June, the suspected case tested negative.

On 10 June, a 60-year-old woman was isolated in Chuadanga after local doctors detected symptoms of monkeypox.

On the same day, a 42-year-old man who came back from India through Benapole Border Crossing on 3 June, was sent to Jashore Hospital after he showed pox like symptoms.

Bangladesh was the first country bar shore passes. On late May, Chittagong Seaport authority barred shore passes for all crew unless in the case of an emergency, while signed-off crew will have to undergo health checks.

Statistics

This is a table of confirmed and suspected monkeypox cases in Asian countries during the ongoing 2022 monkeypox outbreak. It does not include countries where suspected cases were reported but later discarded such as Afghanistan.

Cases of monkeypox by countries of Asia

Country	Confirmed Cases	Suspected Cases	Total Cases	Last Update	First Confirmed Cases
United Arab Emirates	13	—	13	7 June 2022	24 May 2022
Israel	4	—	4	9 June 2022	21 May 2022
Georgia	1	—	1	15 June 2022	15 June 2022
Bangladesh	—	2	2	11 June 2022	—
Total	18	2	20	—

See also

• Monkeypox
• Monkeypox virus
• Monkeypox in Nigeria
• 2022 monkeypox outbreak
• Timeline of the 2022 monkeypox outbreak
• 2022 monkeypox outbreak in Portugal
• 2022 monkeypox outbreak in Spain
• 2022 monkeypox outbreak in the United Kingdom
• 2022 monkeypox outbreak in the United States

Notes

1. The majority of the nations responded to the outbreak, but not all of them included.

References

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External links