Contact tracing launched after mpox claims lives of 4 children in southern Pakistan

Health authorities have launched contact tracing to contain the spread of mpox in southern Pakistan after it claimed the lives of four children, officials and local media reported on Sunday.

The children died last month in Khairpur in the southern Sindh province in the first local outbreak of the zoonotic viral infection in the country, local English daily Dawn reported.

In a statement, the Sindh health department confirmed that initial findings showed the children who died were affected by mpox.

The virus made headlines last month after the deaths of seven newborns with chicken pox-like symptoms in two Khairpur hospitals, promoting health authorities to launch a clinical investigation. The investigation proved that four of the seven deceased were affected by mpox.

However, a review by medical experts found that their deaths were not directly caused by mpox, the department said.

"All the children who died were premature, too weak and had low birth weight. They were already suffering health complications caused by malnutrition," it added.

A health department official who wished to remain anonymous told Anadolu that around two dozen patients, mostly children with unusual skin lesions, have been reported in Khairpur and the adjoining Sukkur district.

The health department temporarily closed the neonatal intensive care units of the Khairpur Medical College Hospital and a private hospital in order to stem the virus' spread.

"An expert team has identified the index case and the possible sources of virus transmission and infection," it added.

"The health department assures the public that the situation is under control and doctors at big hospitals in Sukkur and Khairpur (districts) are monitoring it," the statement said, urging people to report to a nearby government hospital if they see any unusual signs or symptoms.

Pakistan has reported two mpox-related deaths since 2022, according to the state-run National Institute of Health Islamabad.