Another JE case reported, count rises to 5
With another person testing positive for Japanese Encephalitis, the number of people affected by the virus rose to five in the city.
30-year-old Ram Swarth, a resident of Inderpuri in southwest Delhi, is the fifth victim in the city to be diagnosed with the disease that primarily affects the central nervous system, chairman of the MCD Health Committee V.K. Monga said on Monday.
“He is the fifth case of Japanese Encephalitis here. He was admitted on October 1 at Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital and was discharged on October 8. Four cases were reported last month. The situation is not alarming but people should take all precautionary measures to keep mosquitoes at bay,” Mr Monga said.
The cases of Japanese Encephalitis caused by a mosquito-borne virus were first reported in the city on September 21.
Of the four victims, one was a resident of Gole Market in central Delhi while other three were from northwest Delhi areas of Bawana, Pooth Khurd and Jahangirpuri.
Investigations conducted by the National Institute of Communicable Diseases had revealed that patients had not got it from outside the area.
“Since another case has cropped up, we will follow the routine protocol. We will do a community survey, a pig test and surveillance of mosquito prevalence too,” a health ministry official said.
A mosquito-borne disease, JE is endemic to rural and agricultural areas and is highly prevalent in UP and Haryana.
Pigs are carriers of the virus. Culex tritaeniorhynchus mosquito is responsible for the spread of this disease.
Pigs get it from migratory birds and this virus gets amplified 400 times when it enters the pigs. Mosquitoes biting such pigs can be dangerous for humans.
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