EVALUATION OF THE MPOX SURVEILLANCE SYSTEM IN PAKISTAN FROM 2018 TO 2022: A LABORATORY CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY
Main Article Content
Keywords
.
Abstract
Introduction: Monkeypox (MPOX), a zoonotic viral disease caused by the monkeypox virus, has emerged as a growing global health concern.
Objective: The main objective of the study is to find the evaluation of the MPOX surveillance system in Pakistan from 2018 to 2022.
Methodology: This study employed a laboratory-based cross-sectional design to evaluate the performance of the MPOX surveillance system in Pakistan over four years, from January 2018 to December 2022.
Results: Data were collected from 20 patients. Elevated C-reactive protein (CRP) levels were observed in 70% of patients, indicating widespread inflammation. Thrombocytopenia (low platelet count) affected 30% of cases, while anemia was noted in 35% of patients with hemoglobin levels below the normal range. Leukocytosis (elevated white blood cell count) was present in 25% of patients, reflecting immune activation. Mild renal impairment (10%) and elevated alanine transaminase (ALT) levels in 20% of cases highlighted systemic impacts of the disease, particularly on the liver and kidneys.
Conclusion: It is concluded that Pakistan's MPOX surveillance system demonstrated moderate effectiveness from 2018 to 2022, with notable strengths in urban areas but significant gaps in rural coverage, timeliness, and data completeness.
References
2. Lum FM, Torres‐Ruesta A, Tay MZ, et al. Monkeypox: disease epidemiology, host immunity and clinical interventions. Nat Rev Immunol. 2022;22(10):597‐613.
3. Prasad S, Galvan Casas C, Strahan AG, et al. A dermatologic assessment of 101 mpox (monkeypox) cases from 13 countries during the 2022 outbreak: skin lesion morphology, clinical course, and scarring. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2023;88(5):1066‐1073.
4. World Health Organization . Mpox (monkeypox). WHO [Internet]. April 30, 2023. Accessed April 18, 2023. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/monkeypox
5. Hussain A. Pakistan confirms its first case of mpox. Al Jazeera [Internet]. April 30, 2023. Accessed April 26, 2023. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/4/26/pakistan-confirms-its-first-case-of-mpox
6. Karagoz A, Tombuloglu H, Alsaeed M, et al. Monkeypox (mpox) virus: classification, origin, transmission, genome organization, antiviral drugs, and molecular diagnosis. J Infect Public Health. 2023;16(4):531‐541
7. Farooq S, Haider SI, Sachwani S, Parpio YN. Insight into COVID‐19 responses and initiatives from Pakistan. J Coll Physicians Surg Pak. 2020;30(6):50‐52.
8. Khattak, Saadullah, Yasir Ali, Zhiguang Ren, and Xin-Ying Ji. 2023. "Monkeypox Entry and Emergence Preparation in Pakistan" Life 13, no. 12: 2308. https://doi.org/10.3390/life13122308
9. Aden, D., Zaheer, S., Kumar, R., & Ranga, S. (2023). Monkeypox (Mpox) outbreak during COVID-19 pandemic-Past and the future. Journal of medical virology, 95(4), e28701. https://doi.org/10.1002/jmv.28701
10. Candela, C., Raccagni, A. R., Bruzzesi, E., Bertoni, C., Rizzo, A., Gagliardi, G., Canetti, D., Gianotti, N., Mileto, D., Gismondo, M. R., Castagna, A., Nozza, S., & Centro San Luigi (CSL) Working Group (2023). Human Monkeypox Experience in a Tertiary Level Hospital in Milan, Italy, between May and October 2022: Epidemiological Features and Clinical Characteristics. Viruses, 15(3), 667. https://doi.org/10.3390/v15030667
11. Sihuincha Maldonado, M., Lucchetti, A. J., Paredes Pacheco, R. A., Martínez Cevallos, L. C., Zumaeta Saavedra, E. U., Ponce Zapata, L. R., Lizarbe Huayta, F. A., & Matos Prado, E. D. (2023). Epidemiologic characteristics and clinical features of patients with monkeypox virus infection from a hospital in Peru between July and September 2022. International journal of infectious diseases : IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases, 129, 175–180. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijid.2023.01.045
12. Tarín-Vicente, E. J., Alemany, A., Agud-Dios, M., Ubals, M., Suñer, C., Antón, A., Arando, M., Arroyo-Andrés, J., Calderón-Lozano, L., Casañ, C., Cabrera, J. M., Coll, P., Descalzo, V., Folgueira, M. D., García-Pérez, J. N., Gil-Cruz, E., González-Rodríguez, B., Gutiérrez-Collar, C., Hernández-Rodríguez, Á., López-Roa, P., … Mitjà, O. (2022). Clinical presentation and virological assessment of confirmed human monkeypox virus cases in Spain: a prospective observational cohort study. Lancet (London, England), 400(10353), 661–669. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(22)01436-2
13. Català, A., Clavo-Escribano, P., Riera-Monroig, J., Martín-Ezquerra, G., Fernandez-Gonzalez, P., Revelles-Peñas, L., Simon-Gozalbo, A., Rodríguez-Cuadrado, F. J., Castells, V. G., de la Torre Gomar, F. J., Comunión-Artieda, A., de Fuertes de Vega, L., Blanco, J. L., Puig, S., García-Miñarro, Á. M., Fiz Benito, E., Muñoz-Santos, C., Repiso-Jiménez, J. B., López Llunell, C., Ceballos-Rodríguez, C., … Fuertes, I. (2022). Monkeypox outbreak in Spain: clinical and epidemiological findings in a prospective cross-sectional study of 185 cases. The British journal of dermatology, 187(5), 765–772. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjd.21790
14. Nolen LD, Osadebe L, Katomba J, Likofata J, Mukadi D, Monroe B, et al. Extended human-to-human transmission during a monkeypox outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Emerging Infectious Diseases. 2016;22(6):1014-21. PubMed PMID: 610425195.
15. Reynolds MG, Emerson GL, Pukuta E, Karhemere S, Muyembe JJ, Bikindou A, et al. Short report: Detection of human monkeypox in the Republic of the Congo following intensive community education. American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. 2013;88(5):982-5. PubMed PMID: 368857566.
Article Sidebar
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
All articles published in JPTCP are licensed under Copyright Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Monica
Chief Women Medical Officer BPS 19, Surgical OPD Department, Civil Hospital, Karachi
Shamama Tu Zahra
Medical Officer, Department of Medicine, Rasheed Hospital, Lahore
Muhammad Aliyan
House Officer, General Medicine Department, Rai Medical College Teaching Hospital, Sargodha
Mudassir Ali Abro
Public Health Specialist, Health Department Balochistan, Quetta
Om Perkash
Senior Lecturer, Rehabilitation Sciences Department, Dadabhoy Institute of Higher Education, Karachi
Mohsin Jamil Siddiqui
Deputy Director, Anti-Quackery Department, Sindh Healthcare Commission, Karachi
Syed Faraz Munir Bukhari
Registrar Anaesthetist, Anaesthesia Department, SGH Murad Memon Hospital, Karachi
Aaliya Javed
Liaquat National Hospital & Medical College, Karachi
Amjad Ali Khan
Department of Public Health, SZABIST UNIVERSITY Clifton Campus, Karachi