Northeast

35 dengue cases reported in seven districts of Manipur

The highest number with 22 dengue cases has been reported from in and around the areas opposite hotel Classic Grande located at Chingmeirong, Imphal East, state malaria officer Dr Rahman Chisti said.

ByIFP Bureau

Updated 28 Oct 2021, 2:08 pm

Representational Image (PHOTO: IFP)
Representational Image (PHOTO: IFP)

 

As Manipur grapples to return to normalcy with the Covid-19 pandemic ebbing slowly, reports of 35 Dengue cases in seven of 16 districts in the state is becoming a cause of serious concern among the people of the state.

According to the state malaria officer Dr Rahman Chisti, 35 patients suffering from dengue have been reported in the state so far. The highest number with 22 dengue cases has been reported from in and around the areas opposite hotel Classic Grande located at Chingmeirong, Imphal East, he said. Churachandpur, Kangpokpi and Imphal West reported two dengue cases each, while Thoubal reported five and Chandel and Tamenglong reported one case each.

Dr Rahman said that dengue virus is transmitted by female mosquitoes, mainly Aedes Aegypti, and to a lesser extent by Ae. Albopictus. These mosquitoes are also vectors of Chikungunya fever and headache. As of now, the patients reported mostly mild infections and there is no need for hospitalisation, he said.

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Concerning the causes, Rahman said that in Imphal East, dengue cases are highest due to the high presence of tourists. The root cause is yet to be ascertained but it is suspected that the tourists who visited hotel Classic Grande were already infected with dengue and they further spread to others, he added.

During the post-monsoon season, Aedes Aegypti (dengue) mosquitoes usually breed in areas which remain waterlogged for a longer period of time, he mentioned. The larvae of Aedes Aegypti can survive for one year and such larvae have dengue virus, he added.

While vector borne diseases are common during post-monsoon, dengue cases seem to be on the rise in the seven districts, he maintained. Briefing about the spread of the dengue virus, he emphasised how dengue spreads when a mosquito bites an infected human. While there is no specific antiviral treatment for dengue, supportive care is used to help with symptoms, he said. He added that analgesics, hydration, and bed rest might help the patients through the infection.

Concerning preventive measures, he advised the people to prevent mosquito bites by using a mosquito net while sleeping or other means.

Dr Rahman said that no death cases have been reported in Manipur as of now. Fogging has been done at seven districts and a field survey has been conducted on the spot. He recalled that Dengue outbreaks were reported in November 2007 at Moreh and in 2019 at Thangmeiband, Imphal West.   

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He said that under the National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme, samples are being collected from individuals who are suspected to have been affected by dengue. The state vector disease control cell along with local clubs are spreading awareness about how to prevent the disease from further spreading and measures for taking individual care.

“Fogging is done to break the infection chain. Measures to use Larvicides are taken up, and district medical officers are conducting door-to-door visits in affected areas. There is no need to panic as the situation is under control,” he added.

He said that the first case in the Chingmeirong area was detected by a medical officer in charge of Kakching, Dr Surjit. He had seen symptoms in three persons near his residence at Imphal East and reported the matter to the state malaria officer. After taking the samples, the affected persons tested positive on October 18, and the preventive measures started from then, he added.

He said that the mosquito becomes active only during daytime and is not nocturnal. “When infected for the first time, a person can have symptoms of vomiting, headache, joint pain and is mostly non-fatal. A 70-year-old was found to be dengue positive while receiving treatment for a different health issue, but he remains asymptomatic of the virus at present, he said, adding that getting Dengue for the second time can be fatal.

He suspected that the main reason for the maximum number of cases in Imphal East may be due to infected tourists arriving in the state from outside. Hotel Classic Grande is located nearby, and there might have been a traveller infected with dengue, he added. 

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malariaDengue cases in Manipurdenguedengue cases imphal

IFP Bureau

IFP Bureau

IMPHAL, Manipur

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