The Department of Health (DOH) is in contact with Hong Kong authorities after the Chinese territory reported its first case of monkeypox in a traveler from the Philippines.
DOH officer-in-charge Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the patient’s nationality is still unknown.
“Based on what we have gathered yesterday as an initial report they have given us, they were not able to identify yet the nationality of this specific individual,” Vergeire told ANC’s “Headstart” Thursday.
“So, we are still coordinating closely if this really is a national coming from our country and we will be providing information to the public once we get it,” she said.
The Philippines has so far detected four cases of monkeypox, with the first three cases linked to travel.
On Wednesday, the country’s flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) asked its passengers on PR300 flight to Hong Kong on Sept. 5 to monitor their condition after one of the travelers was reported to have monkeypox.
“Despite the relatively low risk of getting infected, passengers on this flight are advised to monitor their health condition and requested to seek medical attention if they are experiencing symptoms.
They can contact the Center for Health Protection (CHP) of the HK Department of Health (DH),” PAL said in a statement.
Reports said Hong Kong’s first monkeypox case involves a 30-year-old resident who reported symptoms of the disease while in hotel quarantine after flying into the city.
The traveler arrived in Hong Kong on Monday from the Philippines. He also traveled to the US and Canada between Aug. 2 and Sept. 2.
“He developed symptoms including a severe sore throat and difficulty in swallowing in the late evening of the same day,” the Hong Kong government said in a statement.
“He also developed a skin rash as well as lymphadenopathy in the past week. He has been sent to Queen Mary Hospital, and has not entered the local community,” they said.
“The patient is isolated in a single airborne infection isolation room. He is now in stable condition,” they also said.
Vergeire said that the DOH is continuing its intensive surveillance on monkeypox especially in areas in the country where the virus was detected.