The Hindu : Front Page : Over 25,000 cases of chikun gunya in State

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Apr 12, 2006

Front Page

Front Page

Over 25,000 cases of chikun gunya in State

Special Correspondent

Seven districts and twin cities affected; Rosaiah confirms two deaths

HYDERABAD: Health Minister K. Rosaiah has confirmed the incidence of chikun gunya in Anantapur, Kurnool, Kadapa, Chittoor, Nalgonda, Prakasam and Guntur districts and Hyderabad city.

He told a press conference here on Tuesday that out of the blood samples collected in these areas recently by experts of the National Institute of Virology, Pune, 139 tested positive for chikun gunya, six for dengue and 15 for both.

The Minister said the incidence of chikun gunya was last reported at Madras in 1965.

The mysterious fever with joint pains found its way into the State in December last.

Though fever subsided after treatment, joint pains continued. Any sufferer of these symptoms must approach the nearest primary health centre for treatment. The Minister said that 25,754 cases of chikun gunya were reported from the affected districts till yesterday but confirmed only two out of the three deaths reported, both from Kadiri in Anantapur district-- Annapurnamma and Yezdhani. Bhaskara Rao of Tirupati, however, died due to renal failure.

Chikun gunya virus is transmitted by aedes egypti mosquito which breeds in artificial accumulation of water in and around dwellings--in discarded tins, broken bottles, flower-pots, coconut shells, earthen pots, tree holes, air-coolers and overhead tanks.

The mosquito whose lifespan is 8 to 34 days, hardly flies for 100 metres. It is a day biter, the Minister said. Mr Rosaiah said preventive and curative steps had been taken up in a big way.

"There is is no dearth of funds, drugs or the will to work."

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