Sri Lanka detects its first monkeypox case

Sri Lanka has detected its first case of monkeypox in a person who arrived from Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Ministry of Health says.

The 20-year-old Sri Lankan had returned to the island on November 01.

According to reports, the youth in question was referred to the national sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinic on November 02, with fever and skin blisters.

He had been having enlarged lymph nodes and was feeling exhausted. As it was suspected that he is infected with monkeypox, several samples were collected and sent to the Medical Research Institute (MRI.

Accordingly, the Department of Virology of the MRI had performed a monkeypox-specific real-time PCR test overnight.

Specific target genes were detected in every sample. Upon careful analysis, it was confirmed on November 03 that the patient is infected with the monkeypox virus.

MRI has tested six suspected patients for monkeypox since the establishment of real-time PCR assay in July this year. However, this is the first laboratory-confirmed case of monkeypox in Sri Lanka and the seventh suspected case tested by the MRI.