Wednesday, Nov 17, 2004
Wednesday, Nov 17, 2004 |
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Thiruvananthapuram
By Our Staff Reporter
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, NOV. 16. Intermittent spells of rain could lead to a spurt in dengue fever and other vector-borne infectious diseases, the district health administration has said. Isolated cases of dengue fever is being reported from various parts of the district, including some Corporation areas. Last week, two schoolchildren aged 11 and three were admitted to a private hospital in the city, with dengue fever. Dengue was confirmed through immunoglobulin tests (`card tests'). However, the district health administration maintains that the `card test' is not a reliable method of confirming dengue as it is known to give false positives. The method for confirmation of dengue fever, approved and adopted by the public health care system, is enzyme-linked immuno assay, which is done in Medical College Hospital, the Public Health Laboratory and a few private clinical laboratories and hospitals. The threat of vector-borne diseases and other infectious diseases remains as long as there are occasional spells of rain. The dengue vector breeds in fresh water pools that form in flowerpots or empty coconut shells following rain.
Incidence of dengue
The incidence of dengue fever has been much less compared to last year's figures. Last year, 785 cases of confirmed dengue fever had been reported in the district while this year, from January till November 15, only 302 cases have been confirmed. Even cholera cases this year have been less, 12 cases so far, as against last year's figure of 42. Incidence of leptospirosis, on the other hand, has shown a slight increase with 102 cases being reported this year while only 73 had been detected last year. The district health administration officials said that the reporting of infectious diseases from the private hospitals in the district remains poor despite constant reminders. A training programme on infectious diseases will be organised for doctors in the private sector on November 18, the District Medical Officer, E. K. Madhavan, said.
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