All travelers entering China from abroad will be required to be tested for monkeypox in addition to those for covid-19. This was announced today by the official newspaper Diario del Pueblo, which cites a new disease prevention guide published by the National Health Commission.
This body is the one who has required the different local authorities to carry out monkeypox tests on those arriving from abroad, especially those whose travel history includes countries in which cases of the disease have been detected in the previous 21 days. upon entry into China.
In addition, “close monitoring” should be carried out on people showing symptoms such as rashes, and any suspected cases should be reported to disease prevention authorities for transfer to “designated medical institutions.”
According to the provisions, all people who show these symptoms must undergo etiology tests to exclude those caused by other diseases such as chickenpox, rubella or measles.
The Commission also urges people who have been in contact with people infected with monkeypox to inform the authorities even if they have not developed any symptoms.
At the moment, China has not reported the detection of monkeypox cases in its territory, which has already spread to fifty countries since the beginning of the year, according to data from the World Health Organization (WHO).
Most of the 3,413 confirmed infections in 2022 have been registered in Europe, with special incidence in countries such as the United Kingdom, Germany or Spain.
In a statement issued yesterday, the regional director of the WHO in Europe, Hans Henri P. Kluge, indicated that almost 90% of the cases detected globally since mid-May are concentrated in that continent, in which infections are have tripled in the last two weeks.
