A 26-year-old man was admitted to Sukraraj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital on Thursday after he exhibited symptoms of monkeypox.

According to hospital officials, the Nepali national returned from Dubai and was referred to the hospital by health workers at Tribhuvan International Airport’s health desk.

“The man has been suffering from fever for the last week and has rashes all over his body. We have isolated him and begun treatment free of cost,” said Dr Manisha Rawal, director at the hospital. “Further investigation will be carried out in coordination with agencies under the Health Ministry.”

The suspect, possibly a migrant worker, does not have any visitors, officials at the hospital said.

Monkeypox is a rare disease caused by infection with the monkeypox virus and one in 10 infected persons can die. Most common in remote parts of central and west Africa, the disease has now been reported in at least 39 countries. Its symptoms include fever, headache, swelling, body pains, exhaustion, and itchy rash on the face, hands, and feet.

As the disease primarily spreads through close person-to-person contact, public health experts recommend self-isolation and good hygiene to avoid it. The World Health Organization is convening its emergency committee next week to decide whether the monkeypox outbreak is a public health emergency—the world's highest health alert.

The UN health agency is considering whether the outbreak should be assessed as a “potential public health emergency of international concern”. Such a declaration, as was done for Covid-19 and Ebola, would help accelerate research and funding to contain the disease.

More than 1,600 confirmed cases and an additional 1,500 suspected cases of monkeypox have been reported to the WHO so far. It expects to identify more cases of monkeypox as it expands surveillance in the countries where the disease is not typically found.

Following the suspected case on Thursday, doctors at the Ministry of Health and Population have decided to send specimens to the World Health Organization's collaborating centre in India for confirmation, as the testing has not been carried out in Nepal yet.

According to experts, polymerase chain reaction laboratories used to test swab samples for Covid-19 can also be used to test the monkeypox virus, but training for lab technicians and reagents are lacking.

Public health experts say that even if the rare viral infection is usually mild and most people recover within weeks, authorities concerned should not underestimate the risks. They stress precautions saying every disease seen in any corner of the world can come to Nepal due to high mobility.

Meanwhile, the infectious disease hospital also admitted two cholera cases on Thursday afternoon. The patients who had bowel movements more than 30 times since midnight were first taken to Kathmandu Model Hospital, where antigen tests of their stool samples returned positive for cholera.

"Two sisters residing in the Bagbazar area of Kathmandu have been admitted to the hospital’s intensive care unit. One patient was in shock when we received them," said Rawal, the director at the infectious disease hospital. “We have sent stool samples for further confirmation.”