By Shankar Raj*
Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala State Health Department has sounded an alert in three districts following the sudden outbreak of West Nile fever. Ten people have been infected while two deaths are also suspected to have been caused by the virus.
The cases have been reported in Malappuram, Kozhikode, and Thrissur districts.
Health Minister Veena George has asked officials to take urgent steps to eradicate mosquitoes and eliminate the breeding sites to prevent further spread of the disease.
District Medical Officers have been instructed to take up pre-monsoon cleaning and mosquito control efforts on a war footing.
The district vector control units have collected the samples from different parts of the affected districts and have sent the samples for testing. It has been directed to strengthen the awareness activities to prevent fever.
Since 2011, West Nile has been reported in various districts in the state. The meeting urged the people that anyone with fever or other symptoms should seek treatment immediately.
According to information provided under IDSP of the state health department, there have been six confirmed cases of West Nile fever in the current month in the state and one death.
Kozhikode district collector Snehil Kumar Singh said that there was no need for concern as four confirmed persons have recovered and been discharged from the hospital. Currently, one person is under treatment at Kozhikode Medical College Hospital.
In Thrissur, a 79-year-old patient, who had tested positive for West Nile virus, died in a private hospital. This is the first confirmed death of a West Nile virus-infected patient in the state this year.
District medical officer (DMO) Dr T P Sreedevi said the patient was having comorbidities, including age-related ailments, as well as cardiological problems and diabetes mellitus. The hospital sources said he was admitted to the hospital with a fever about a fortnight back, and he died on May 3.
West Nile fever is caused by a virus transmitted through bites from infected Culex mosquitoes. Unlike Japanese Encephalitis (often referred to as Japan fever), which primarily affects children, West Nile fever mostly impacts adults.
West Nile fever presents with symptoms similar to Japan fever. But the disease is not as serious as Japan fever. But those affected should be careful. The best way to prevent the spreading of the fever is to control the mosquito density.
The disease was first identified in Uganda in 1937 and has been reported sporadically in Kerala since 2011, with the first cases identified in the Alappuzha district.
*Shankar Raj is a former editor of The New Indian Express, Karnataka and Kerala, and writes regularly on current affairs.
