Hong Kong’s first confirmed monkeypox case who had a history of travel in the Philippines is not a Filipino, the Department of Health (DOH) said.
“One thing that we can assure our Filipinos that hindi siya Pinoy, hindi siya Filipino (this person is not a Filipino),” said DOH Officer-in-Charge Maria Rosario Vergeire in a press briefing on Friday, Sept. 9.
Vergeire said that this patient, a 30-year-old man, also had recent travels to Canada and the US before making his way to the Philippines. “Nagdaan siya dito sa Pilipinas bago umuwi sa Hong Kong (He went to the Philippines before going to Hong Kong),” she said.
It was earlier reported that this patient was a passenger of Philippine Airlines (PAL) flight PR300 last Sept. 5.
Vergeire said that they already identified the patient’s close contacts in the said flight.
“We are closely monitoring them. Up until now, they are all asymptomatic,” she said.
Philippines’ 3rd & 4th monkeypox cases
In a related development, the DOH reported that the country’s third and fourth monkeypox cases still remain in isolation.
The third case is still undergoing home isolation despite the patient’s 21st day of isolation last Aug. 31, the DOH said.
This 29-year-old Filipino, who had travel history in countries with monkeypox cases, is not yet tagged as recovered since the status of "lesions has not yet met the required lesion criteria for discharge from isolation," the DOH said.
Of the 17 close contacts identified, 13 have finished their self monitoring period and four have finished their quarantine. All of them were asymptomatic, the DOH noted.
Meanwhile, the fourth case, a 25-year-old Filipino with no travel history to countrries with confirmed monkeypox cases, remains in isolation while waiting for this person’s “scabs to fall off,” the DOH said.
“Since currently in a facility, discharge from isolation criteria will be based from assessment of attending physician considering clinical status (including lesion stages) and/or laboratory criteria,” the DOH said.
Twenty close contacts were identified. Of which, 18 have finished quarantine, one has finished the self monitoring period, and another one is "assisting the case in the isolation facility whose quarantine will only start when the case is discharged from isolation." All of them have no symptoms, the DOH said.