New Delhi: Parts of India are witnessing a Dengue outbreak, a disease often reported during monsoon season. Following the incessant rainfall that led to floods and landslides in the past three months in Uttarakhand, the number of dengue patients is rising. Uttarakhand’s Haridwar has reported 250 cases of dengue so far, said an official. Two weeks ago, the number of dengue patients in the city stood at 103. Dhiraj Singh Garbyal, District Magistrate of Haridwar said,
Dengue has spread massively in Haridwar, the number of dengue patients in the district has reached close to 250. More than two and a half dozen patients are fighting for life and death in hospitals.
Also Read: Uttarakhand Reports Over 1,100 Cases Of Dengue; Micromanagement Plan Established For Dehradun
As reported by news agency ANI, the health department is struggling with the long queue of patients at both government and private hospitals, with the worst conditions at Kankhal, Ruhalki and Roorkee.
Isolation wards have been created in government hospitals, reported ANI. Haridwar’s Chief Medical Officer Dr Manish Dutt said,
Till the temperature does not fall in September and October, the peak of dengue will continue. In such a situation, people need to be aware.
The District Magistrate has appealed to the citizens to keep their surroundings clean. The municipal employees have also been instructed to issue challans to the houses where dengue larvae are found, reported ANI.
The state of Jharkhand is also grappling with the rise in dengue cases. On Saturday (September 16), 21 new cases of Dengue were reported, taking the total tally to 958.
Also Read: Dengue, Chikungunya Cases Rise To 955 In Jharkhand
Dengue: Causes, Symptoms, Prevention
Dengue is a vector-borne disease caused by vectors, which are living organisms such as mosquitoes. Dengue is transmitted to humans through Aedes mosquitoes, which are also known as forest mosquitoes and are mostly found in Southeast Asian regions.
Dr. Dhiren Gupta, Senior Consultant at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, Delhi explained,
There are four strains of Dengue – DENV-1, DENV-2, DENV-3, and DENV-4, all of which are capable of inducing severe disease. Among all of them, 99 per cent of the cases have mild to moderate symptoms. In recent times, a fifth strain (DENV-5) has also been identified.
Dr Gupta added that stagnant or slow-draining water provides ideal breeding grounds for mosquitoes. Along with this, weather conditions like monsoon season also influence the growth of these mosquitoes and the rise in Dengue cases.
The common symptoms of Dengue include:
- Headache
- Mild Fever
- Throat Pain
- Bodyache
- Vomiting
- Recurrent loose motions
- Swollen Glands
- Nausea
- Pain in the eyes
- Mild Breathlessness
Also Read: The Rise Of Dengue: Know All About The Causes, Symptoms And Measures To Stay Safe
The severe symptoms include high-grade fever, a decrease in the platelet count, acute dehydration, a drop in blood pressure and fatigue, among others.
Patients with mild or moderate symptoms are required to stay at home, include plenty of fluids in their diet and use medicines to bring down the fever if prescribed by the doctor. Whereas, those with severe symptoms may require hospitalisation and platelet transfusions, said Dr. Ajay Agarwal, Director of Internal Medicine at Fortis Hospital in Noida.
As suggested by the experts, the preventive steps include: maintaining personal hygiene and cleanliness; wearing protective clothing; using insect repellents at home; avoiding the accumulation of water in home appliances like coolers, flower pots, and vases as it would not allow these species to thrive; and cleaning drains at home to prevent any kind of blockage.
(With inputs from ANI and PTI)
NDTV – Dettol have been working towards a clean and healthy India since 2014 via the Banega Swachh India initiative, which is helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. The campaign aims to highlight the inter-dependency of humans and the environment, and of humans on one another with the focus on One Health, One Planet, One Future – Leaving No One Behind. It stresses on the need to take care of, and consider, everyone’s health in India – especially vulnerable communities – the LGBTQ population, indigenous people, India’s different tribes, ethnic and linguistic minorities, people with disabilities, migrants, geographically remote populations, gender and sexual minorities. In wake of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign will continue to raise awareness on the same along with focussing on the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children, fight malnutrition, mental wellbeing, self care, science and health, adolescent health & gender awareness. Along with the health of people, the campaign has realised the need to also take care of the health of the eco-system. Our environment is fragile due to human activity, which is not only over-exploiting available resources, but also generating immense pollution as a result of using and extracting those resources. The imbalance has also led to immense biodiversity loss that has caused one of the biggest threats to human survival – climate change. It has now been described as a “code red for humanity.” The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene. Banega Swasth India will also be taking forward the dream of Swasth Bharat, the campaign feels that only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF)status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and the country can become a Swasth or healthy India.
