PESHAWAR: Pakistan on Saturday confirmed its first mpox case of 2025, detected in a passenger returning from Dubai at Bacha Khan International Airport in Peshawar, provincial health authorities said.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Health Advisor Ehtesham Ali said that the Public Health Reference Lab confirmed the presence of the virus in a 35-year-old individual. “The patient has been transferred to Police Services Hospital, where he is under isolation and receiving treatment,” Ehtesham Ali said.
Health officials said that the infected passenger was identified during routine screening by Border Health Services staff at the airport. “District Health Officers will conduct contact tracing once passenger information is provided,” the health advisor added.
The detection has brought the total number of mpox cases in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to 10 since 2023, with two cases reported in 2023, seven in 2024, and now one in 2025.
Pakistan reported nine mpox cases in 2024, all among travellers returning from abroad.
Dr. Mukhtar Bharth, Health Coordinator for the Ministry of Health, said that rigorous screening protocols remain in place at all airports. “Both federal and provincial governments are working in coordination to curb the spread of mpox,” Dr. Bharth said in a statement.
While Pakistan has not reported any cases of the mutated clade I variant, authorities remain alert.
Mpox outbreak
Mpox, a viral disease related to smallpox, can spread through close contact or contaminated materials like bedding and clothing, as per the World Health Organisation (WHO).
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While outbreaks of clade I mpox have shown fatality rates of up to 10%, the clade II variant—which is more common globally—has a much lower fatality rate of under 0.2%, according to the United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Those most at risk of severe infections include infants, pregnant women, and individuals with weakened immune systems. Initial symptoms of mpox are flu-like, including fever, headache, and muscle weakness, followed by a painful or itchy rash.
In August 2023, WHO declared the global spread of the virus a health emergency.