Vietnam confirms first monkeypox infection

Monkeypox infected patients in HCM City will be treated at the HCM City Hospital for Tropical Diseases (Dantri)

By Phong Lan
Dantri International

HO CHI MINH CITY: A woman returning to Vietnam from Dubai has been infected with the monkeypox virus, the first case recorded in the country so far, the Vietnamese Ministry of Health announced on October 3.

According to the ministry’s report, the 35-year-old woman residing in Ho Chi Minh City travelled to Dubai from July to September 22 on a holiday. She showed symptoms including high temperatures, muscle aches, a headache, coughs, and itchy bumps during her stay in Dubai.

Upon arriving at Ho Chi Minh City’s Tan Son Nhat Airport, the woman underwent a test and the result came back positive for the monkeypox virus. Later genome sequencing by Oxford University and Ho Chi Minh City Hospital for Tropical Diseases confirmed the test result.

The woman has been isolated and treated at Ho Chi Minh City Hospital for Tropical Diseases. She is now in stable health.

All people who came in close contact with the patient in Vietnam are being monitored, the ministry said.

The Ministry of Health earlier asked people entering Vietnam from areas with monkeypox outbreaks to be monitored and suspected carriers will be quarantined.

Border gates in the country have been asked to intensify monitoring measures. Suspected monkeypox cases at the border would be diagnosed and their medical and travel history analysed.

People with suspected symptoms including unexplained blisters, fevers above 38 degrees Celsius, headaches and muscle aches, are advised to come to the nearest hospitals to be tested for monkeypox. They would need to either self-isolate or be isolated in hospitals while waiting for the test results.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), monkeypox virus has been found in over 70 countries and territories with thousands of infections.

The illness can be spread from person to person through close contact, such as wounds, body fluids, droplets, or contact with contaminated objects like blankets and pillows.