Assam: GMCH Superintendent denies Monkeypox case, confirms Chickenpox instead

Abhijeet Sarma, the Superintendent of Guwahati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), confirmed that there is currently no reported monkeypox case at the facility. This clarification comes in response to alarming reports circulating through various media outlets that claimed a monkeypox death had occurred within the hospital.

The initial reports suggested that GMCH had recorded the death of an individual due to monkeypox, who had been admitted to the Neuro Surgery Department of the Cardiothoracic and Neuroscience Centre. These reports went further to state that three staff members—a nurse, a technician, and a ward boy—had been identified as having come into contact with the deceased and were exhibiting symptoms. It was also claimed that another patient suffering from monkeypox was in stable condition and being monitored.

However, Superintendent Sarma said that the case in question is actually chickenpox, not monkeypox, which was misreported in the media. "There is no monkeypox case at GMCH," Sarma said speaking to India Today NE. "The misinformation about monkeypox has caused unnecessary panic."

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