State in grip of viral fevers as dengue cases shoot over 6.4K

Hyderabad: There is a surge in viral fevers across the State. The number of patients with dengue and chikungunya has increased during the last few days. According to authorities, over 6,400 dengue cases were reported till the end of August.

Officials say the top ten dengue-high-risk districts include Hyderabad, Suryapet, Medchal Malkajgiri, Khammam, Nizamabad, Nalgonda, Ranga Reddy, Jagtial, Sangareddy, and Warangal. They had so far tested 1,11,650 samples; the total number of cases was 6,405 with a positivity rate of 5.7 per cent.

Data released by the Health Department shows the number of dengue cases reported a week ago was 5,372.

A senior official said the cases will be declining in the coming days. While the positivity rate was 6.5 a week ago, now it is 5.7 per cent, which is a downward trend, he informed.

Besides dengue, this year there were more cases of Chikungunya. The total number of samples tested this year till August 31 were 3,614; the number of cases was 178 with a positivity rate of 5 per cent. The cases reported a week ago were 152. The positivity rate was stagnant at 5 per cent.

There have been instances of a few malaria cases in State. The total samples tested as of August 31 were over 23.06 lakh; the total number of detected cases was 200 with a positivity of 0.008 per cent. The officials took up the fever survey by visiting 4,17,433 houses, screening 12,77,284. The number of fever cases detected was 6,192.

Officials have advised the citizens to remove water from coolers and small containers at least once a week, use aerosol during the day to prevent mosquito bites, and not wear clothes that expose limbs. Children should not be allowed to play in shorts and half-sleeved clothes, using mosquito nets or repellents while sleeping during the day; remove stagnant water in drains, garbage, and coolers, as keeping it for more than a week is an alarm for dengue.

Meanwhile, Health Minister C Damodar Rajanarasimha visited several city hospitals, including Gandhi and Kingkoti. He went around the wards where patients with viral fevers were admitted. He enquired about facilities being provided.