Asia's first monkeypox death confirmed

India confirmed its first monkeypox death yesterday, a young man in the southern state of Kerala, in what is only the fourth known fatality from the disease in the current outbreak.

Last week, Spain reported two monkeypox-related deaths and Brazil its first. The death in India is also the first in Asia.

The 22-year-old Indian man died on Saturday, authorities said, and 21 people who had come in contact with him had been isolated. None of them have symptoms.

The man had arrived in Kerala on July 21 after testing positive in the United Arab Emirates but visited a hospital only on July 26 after experiencing fatigue and fever.

India's federal health ministry has formed a task force of senior officials to monitor monkeypox cases.

The World Health Organization said late last month 78 countries had reported more than 18,000 cases, the majority in Europe.