09 August,2010 08:26 AM IST | | Taw Nana
Shaheen Bagh has reported 5 suspected deaths and approximately 100 cases of the deadly viral disease this season
Temperatures are rising among the residents of this southeast Delhi colony and doctors are concerned. Shaheen Bagh is a small but densely populated locality neighbouring Jamia Nagar. The area has reported 5 suspected dengue deaths and about 100 cases in the last month or so.
Representative pic
The locality itself is not exactly a sight for sore eyes - there is no proper drainage, piles of mud and puddles of water greet you at every corner with flies and mosquitoes buzzing over them. A breath of fresh air is a distant dream, so is proper medical care.
"Several patients have come to me in the past few days; they all had dengue-like symptoms. High fever, vomiting, bodyache, weakness, decrease in platelet count, leucopenia, restlessness etc are all signs of dengue. Few of them are being treated at our centre. Others have been referred to various hospitals. The first case came to us on the 20th of July; since then many more cases have come to light," said a senior doctor from the area on condition of anonymity.
A second-year fashion designing student and a second-year B tech student were the first reported casualties.
"My daughter was a very healthy girl. But on July 28, we admitted her to Sanjeevani Hospital with complaints of high fever, vomiting and weakness. I can't comment upon the quality of medical treatment provided to her but something went wrong and she went into coma.
The doctors there said my daughter, Simi, was suffering from dengue and we were referred to the Holy Child Hospital. She died there on July 30 because of high fever, multiple-organ dysfunction and profound shock. She was in the second year of her fashion designing course and was all set to get married in two months," said Rashid, the victim's father.
"On July 22 Mehran was admitted to Apollo hospital; he died just three days later, on the 25th of July. He had high fever and his platelet count fell to 26,000. We couldn't do anything about it. It happened so suddenly," said Mehran's relative.
"We had received this information a few days ago. We consider this a very sensitive matter; two days ago we had also discussed this issue in a meeting with some senior doctors and MCD committee members. Action has already been initiated. MCD is cleaning up the concerned area and they have also sprayed some medicine over there," said Delhi Health Minister Dr Kiran Walia.
Some locals claim the government is trying to downplay the dengue cases as several players and visitors during the Commonwealth Games are to be accommodated in the neighbouring Jamia Millia Islamia University.
| Demystifying Dengue |
| Dengue fever is a disease caused by a family of viruses that are transmitted by mosquitoes. It is an acute illness of sudden onset that usually follows a benign course with symptoms such as headache, fever, exhaustion, severe muscle and joint pain, swollen glands (lymphadenopathy), and rash. The presence (the 'dengue triad') of fever, rash, and headache (and other pains) is particularly characteristic of dengue. Other signs of dengue fever include bleeding gums, severe pain behind the eyes, and red palms and soles. Dengue is transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes, particularly A. aegypti and A. albopictus.Dengue may also be transmitted via infected blood productsu00a0 and in countries such as Singapore, where dengue is endemic, the risk was estimated to be between 1.6 and 6 per 10,000 blood transfusions.The WHOu00a0 says some 2.5 billion people, are now at risk from dengue and estimates that there may be 50 million cases of dengue infection worldwide every year. The disease is now endemic in more than 100 countries. |
| KEEPING THE GAMES HEALTHY |
| The government said on Saturday that 240 doctors and paramedic staff would be available round the clock at the Commonwealth Games village to tackle any medical emergency or outbreak of disease during the mega sporting event. |
