The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Malarial cases on the rise in urban areas of State

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Jul 22, 2005

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Malarial cases on the rise in urban areas of State

Staff Reporter

Drug combination therapy stressed for cure

CHENNAI: The incidence of malaria is increasing in the urban areas of the State. The cases recorded in 2004 had gone up to 67.6 per cent compared to 42.7 per cent in 1990. In Chennai, residents in the northern parts are the most affected.

These facts were brought out in a continuing education programme on malaria on Thursday at the Stanley Medical College and Hospital (SMC). The meet called for awareness among the public to control the disease.

While the number of cases in the rural areas of the State has declined to 26.3 per cent in 2004 compared to 40.4 per cent in 1990, ironically, there has been a spurt in the disease in urban areas. Due to a lack of awareness, urban areas contribute to more breeding points for malarial parasites.

Open drainage and uncovered overhead tanks, especially in increasing slum areas, were cited as reasons for the increase in the incidence. P. Vijayalakshmi, director of medical education, said even developed countries such as the U.S. were seeing a resurgence in the disease, mostly due to immigrants. She inaugurated the Leptospirosis lab at the hospital.

T. Raveendran, Dean of SMC hospital, said 25-30 per cent of the patients were diagnosed with malaria daily. He stressed on the drug combination therapy to avoid resistance to the drugs. Doctors have to concentrate on multiple drugs for proper treatment. Vaccination must be done regularly to control malaria. On the incidence of leptospirosis, Dr. Raveendran said 10 per cent of patients in the hospital with fever of unknown origin had been diagnosed as leptospirosis cases. The Department of Microbiology, SMC, had detected the first case of leptospirosis in the 1986 epidemic.

The SMC Hospital would take up a research project on malaria control and eradication with focus on North Chennai.

Organised by the Department of Microbiology, SMC and Tamil Nadu Dr. MGR Medical University, the programme on "Battling plasmodia" (main group of organisms causing malaria) saw 150 doctors discussing various topics, including cerebral malaria and effects of malaria in pregnancy. Jagadeesh Ramaswamy, Additional Director, Department of Public Health participated.

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