New 5-bed Isolation Ward Established for Mpox in Vizag

Visakhapatnam: The State government has established a five-bed isolation ward at the Government Chest and Infectious Diseases Hospital in Visakhapatnam, announced Dr Jagadiswara Rao, the district medical and health officer, on Tuesday.

The Visakhapatnam Port health officer has been appointed as the nodal officer for the airport, supported by a three-member Covid-19 team to test suspected cases. If symptoms are detected, patients will be transferred to the Government Chest Hospital, where assistant professor of medicine P. Venkaiah and the hospital's nodal officer will initiate treatment.

Samples from suspected patients will be sent to the National Institute of Virology in Pune or SVIMS in Tirupati. Basic tests will also be conducted at the microbiology and VDRL lab in Visakhapatnam.

A senior doctor at KGH noted that Mpox symptoms are similar to those of chickenpox, but patients with Mpox require isolation.

Health director Dr K. Padmavathi stated, “We are fully prepared to handle any Mpox cases. Our health personnel and hospitals are equipped to manage the situation. We are also monitoring international travellers, especially from African countries, at our airports.”

District Medical and Health Officers (DMHOs) are working to raise awareness among health personnel through audio-visual presentations on symptoms and protocols for managing suspected or infected cases, including the disease’s incubation period and its self-limiting nature.