BENGALURU: Samples of two more suspected cases of monkeypox, tested at Virus Research and Diagnostic Laboratory (VRDL) at Bengaluru Medical College and Research Institute (BMCRI), came negative. Sources in the health department said VRDL received the sample of a 47-year-old male from Bengaluru, who had returned from Dubai on August 8. He had symptoms of monkeypox and had visited a private hospital for treatment. His sample was sent from the hospital to VRDL on August 12.
VRDL also received a sample of another four-year-old boy the same day, from a private hospital in Dharwad. Samples of both cases tested negative for monkeypox, and were concluded to be cases of viral infection. So far, VRDL has received five samples, all of which tested negative.
Meanwhile, the Infectious Disease Research Foundation (IDRF) has begun sewage surveillance by testing samples at Bengaluru International Airport to look for the monkeypox virus, as per recommendations of the Technical Advisory Committee. Reports are awaited.