Intermittent showers in Mumbai bring dengue, malaria

MUMBAI: With intermittent rain, dengue and malaria cases have started trickling in the hospital outpatient departments and clinics. Hospital admissions too have started swelling over the last fortnight.
At Santacruz’s Surya Children Hospital, a seven-month-old infant is among four children who have tested positive for the mosquito-borne viral infection this month.Three of the four children have required hospitalisation, though all have been successfully treated.

“All of them came with the usual symptoms of high fever, cold and body ache. The rashes appeared when they were on their way to recovery on the fourth or fifth day,” said Dr Bhupendra Avasthi, director of Surya. He said that in at least two cases, adults from the same family were infected. Dengue wreaked havoc in the city lasting year claiming 17 lives, highest in a span of five years, and affecting over 13,000 people. Till May, the BMC has recorded around 38 confirmed dengue cases and nearly 900 suspected cases. Physician Dr Pratit Samdani, who has admitted three patients for dengue this week at various south Mumbai hospitals, said that cases have started coming since the past ten days. “The symptoms are the usual so far. There are also cases of malaria, gastroenteritis and typhoid,” he said. Civic officials said that nearly 1,500 cases of gastroenteritis have been reported so far.
BMC’s executive health officer Dr Padmaja Keskar said that both malaria and dengue cases are under control till now. “We were worried about leptospirosis more after the first showers on June 2. But with preventive medicines that nearly 27,000 people received, we have contained it for now,” she said. From the beginning of this year till May, there have been only ten confirmed lepto cases, she said, adding that the figures for June are being compiled currently.
The BMC’s insecticide department said that despite campaigns, there has been little public participation in curbing mosquito breeding. “The showers combined with humidity is extremely conducive for mosquito breeding. People must ensure that water doesn’t stagnate for seven days,” said Rajan Naringrekar, BMC’s insecticide officer.