Dengue, rat fever, hepatitis surge in Kerala; masses seek treatment
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Thiruvananthapuram: As the monsoon advances in Kerala with heavy bouts of rain, cases of fever increase in the state. The state health department updated statistics on fever on Saturday, after five days, and 493 people were diagnosed with dengue fever and 158 people had H1N1. In five days, 55,830 people sought treatment due to fever, while 11,438 people were alone on Friday.
According to the fresh update in five days, dengue infection is suspected to be in 1693 people. 493 people have been confirmed. Two suspected dengue deaths. Sixty-nine people got rat fever, and three died. Sixty-four people were diagnosed with hepatitis A, and 21 people with hepatitis B. Six West Nile cases were also confirmed.
The health department stopped publishing daily patient figures on July 1. Publication of the consolidated figures was halted after unpaid Nationa Health Mission employees declared non-cooperation, Madhyamam reported. The figure was published on the website after the finance department sanctioned Rs 45 crore for NHM employees yesterday.
In other news, a new case of amoebic meningoencephalitis, a rare and deadly brain infection, has surfaced in Kerala, affecting a 14-year-old boy from Payyoli. This marks the fourth occurrence of the disease in the state since May, all involving children, with three fatalities already reported. In the latest case, one of the doctors treating the boy said that he was admitted to the hospital on July 1, and his condition is improving. The doctor said on Saturday that the infection was identified quickly at the hospital, and treatment, including medicines from abroad, was given immediately.
On Wednesday, a 14-year-old boy infected with the free-living amoeba died in Kerala. Prior to that, two others — a five-year-old girl from Malappuram and a 13-year-old girl from Kannur—died on May 21 and June 25, respectively, due to a rare brain infection.
