Islamabad : Spokes person Ministry of national health services sajid Hussain shah said The National Institute of Health (NIH) has confirmed the identification of the Mpox virus strain in a patient from Mardan, Pakistan, who has a recent travel history to gulf countries. Utilizing next-generation sequencing, the virus has been classified as Clade IIb.
Mpox virus is categorized into two primary clades: Clade I and Clade II. The recent global outbreak from 2022 to 2023 was predominantly linked to Clade II, which is known to cause milder symptoms compared to Clade I. Currently, the ongoing outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is primarily associated with Clade Ib. Notably, as of now, there have been no reported cases of Clade I in Pakistan.
In response to this situation, the NIH is actively monitoring the disease’s progression within the country and is implementing measures to ensure public health safety.