PALO, Leyte — A patient who sought treatment in a hospital for dengue fever became the first suspect of Monkeypox (mpox) in Eastern Visayas.

The Provincial Health Office of Northern Samar said the suspected mpox patient is a 24-year-old male who has a two-week history of fever, experiencing body weakness and vesicular rashes.

“This individual has no travel history,” Northern Samar Provincial Health Office (NSPHO) said in a statement on Sunday. The patient is presently confined and in isolation at the Northern Samar Provincial Hospital in Catarman. The patient will undergo a confirmatory testing for Monkeypox.

NSPHO stated that it has already alerted the Catarman Municipal Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit to conduct a contact tracing.

“Rest assured, our surveillance systems are fully operational, allowing us to closely monitor the situation and safeguard our community from potential health risks,” NSPHO stated.

Jelyn Malibago, information officer of the Department of Health regional office, said specimen taken from the patient will be sent for confirmatory testing at the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine in Muntinlupa where it will undergo a reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test.

“His initial admission was due to dengue,” Malibago said. Confirmatory test on a specimen taken from the patient found him positive for dengue.