Mpox: health dept for ensuring strict screening steps at Karachi airport

KARACHI: Amid rising global concerns over Mpox (Monkeypox), the Sindh Health department has ordered immediate strengthening of screening mechanisms at Jinnah International Airport, Karachi.

In a directive to the Director of Border Health Services Pakistan, authorities emphasised strict surveillance, particularly for passengers arriving from Saudi Arabia. The move aims to prevent the virus’s transmission into Pakistan.

Officials, including the Director of Health Services Karachi and Dr Zafar Mahdi, the airport’s focal person, have been directed to hold urgent meetings with relevant departments to enhance screening measures.

Health authorities are on high alert, urging immediate action to detect and control any suspected cases before they spread.

Pakistan had confirmed its second case of Mpox (Monkeypox) on March 22, 2025 as a 29-year-old man from Shah Latif Town, Malir, tested positive for the viral infection in Karachi.

The patient, currently receiving treatment at Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC), arrived at the hospital two days ago with visible skin lesions.

According to the authorities the patient is in stable condition and is being closely monitored in the isolation ward. The patient’s wife, who recently traveled to Saudi Arabia, exhibited similar symptoms.

This marks the second Mpox case in Pakistan in 2025, following an earlier infection detected in January in Peshawar, when a traveler from a Gulf country tested positive. Officials reported a total of eight cases last year and nine in 2023, all linked to travelers returning from the Middle East, with no evidence of local transmission so far.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025