Suspected case of monkeypox virus from UP's Ghaziabad tests negative: Report

After samples from a five-year-old girl in Uttar Pradesh's Ghaziabad, were sent for testing for monkeypox, the suspected case on Tuesday tested negative for the virus.

Few days ago, the samples of the girl were sent for testing to ICMR - National Institute of Virology in Pune. The health department sent the samples of the girl after she complained of itching and rashes on her body.

While the government had also said that it is "unnecessary panic mongering" and that no cases of the disease have been reported from India so far.

The Chief Medical Officer of Ghaziabad said the test was just a "precautionary measure" as the girl has no other health issues and did not have close contact with anyone who has travelled abroad in the past month.

"Samples of a five-year-old girl have been collected for testing for monkeypox, as a precautionary measure, as she had complaints of itching and rashes on her body. She has no other health issues and neither she nor any of her close contacts travelled abroad in the past month," CMO Ghaziabad said.

The Union Health Ministry had also issued "Guidelines on Management of Monkeypox Disease" to ensure advance preparedness across the country, in view of the rising reports of monkeypox cases in non-endemic countries.

According to the guidelines, a confirmed case is laboratory confirmed for Monkeypox virus by detection of unique sequences of viral DNA either by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) or sequencing.