Thiruvananthapuram: The number of deaths due to amoebic encephalitis in the state is increasing. Nine people have died in 22 days. The death toll in 11 months has reached 42. During this period, 170 people have been infected with the disease. This month alone, 17 people have been infected. The latest death was KV Vinaya (26), a native of Nedumangad, Thiruvananthapuram, who was undergoing treatment for 40 days after contracting the disease. It is reported that about twenty people are undergoing treatment in various hospitals after contracting the disease.
Despite testing water samples from water bodies and other places where the infected people came into contact, the source of the disease has not been found. This is putting more pressure on the health department. Health experts have not yet suggested any specific ways to prevent the disease. The authorities have been constantly saying that the disease comes from water and that people should not bathe in stagnant water. However, no exact answer has been found as to how the bedridden patients, who have been in a weakened state for years due to other ailments, became infected.
Meanwhile, the study initiated by the Health Department is progressing. The study, which is also joined by experts from the ICMR National Institute of Epidemiology in Chennai, does not include environmental experts. Therefore, there have been allegations that all aspects of the disease related to the environment will not be part of the study. The study is being conducted at Malappuram, Kozhikode, Kollam and Thiruvananthapuram medical colleges.
The study team is led by people from the community medicine and public health departments. Since the spread and source of the disease are different, each case should be studied separately. Health workers estimate that it will take at least six months to complete the study.