13 kids die of infectious diseases in Uttar Pradesh village - contaminated water supply

[Ronan Kelly]

13 kids die of infectious diseases in Uttar Pradesh village
By IANSJanuary 9th, 2010 LUCKNOW - Thirteen children have died due to ?infectious diseases? in the last three weeks in an Uttar Pradesh village, bringing the health authorities under the scanner.


People of Rajthal village in Badaun district, some 250 km from Lucknow, said while all the 13 children died of water-borne diseases, including cholera, dysentery and typhoid, nearly 70 others were in the grip of such infections.

?It was bound to happen?It?s all due to the contaminated water supply to our village. For the past several weeks we are receiving contaminated water. Moreover, the regular sanitation drive has not been conducted for the last three months,? Dilwari Devi, a resident of the village, told reporters Saturday in Badaun.

The villagers claimed they registered several complaints with civic agencies about the contaminated water supply and the poor sanitation.

Admitting to the poor sanitary conditions in the village, Badaun?s chief medical officer P.K. Jain told IANS: ?I have come to know about the deaths from local journalists. Prima-facie, the deaths definitely expose the lackadaisical approach of health officials. I have ordered an inquiry into the deaths and recommended strict action against the health officials.?

http://blog.taragana.com/health/2010/01/09/13-kids-die-of-infectious-diseases-in-uttar-pradesh-village-18096/

[Ronan Kelly]

13 children die of pneumonia in Badaun (Uttar Pradesh)

13 children die of pneumonia in Badaun

STAFF WRITER 11:35 HRS IST
Badaun (UP), Jan 10 (PTI) At least 13 children have died due to pneumonia and malnutrition in the past two months in Rajthal village of the district, health officials said here today.

13 children, in the age group of 6 months and six years have died due to pneumonia and malnutrition and several others have been taken ill in the village in Islampur block, 65 kms from the district headquarters, district Chief Medical officer (CMO) P K Jain said.

A medical team was camping in the village to ensure proper medical treatment for the people, the CMO added.

http://ptinews.com/news/461300_13-children-die-of-pneumonia-in-Badaun

[alert]

Re: 13 children die of pneumonia in Badaun (Uttar Pradesh)

http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/showthread.php?t=138556

I believe this is the same incident as the above thread, and should likely be merged. It is the same village in both cases.

I suspect that several diseases are present in that area, including cholera, typhoid, and maybe even H1N1, hence the differering description. And I suspect malnutrition my be involved as well, hence the predominance of illness in children (children get malnourished more easily than adults).

Update: Thank you to the moderator who merged the threads.

[alert]

Re: 13 kids die of infectious diseases in Uttar Pradesh village - contaminated water supply

Not sure what this is. Only kids seem to be affected, and 13 deaths in this village is far too much for H1N1. This article is 3 days old already, and nothing further was published. Malnuutrition does seem to have something to do with this - perhaps this is the result of a vitamin deficiency?

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/Badaun--13-children-die-in-2-months--cause-still-unknown/565794

Badaun: 13 children die in 2 months, cause still unknownPost CommentLarger | Smaller Express News Service
Tags : health, children

Posted: Monday , Jan 11, 2010 at 0202 hrs
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The death of 13 children in the last two months at Islamnagar block’s Rajphal village in Badaun district, Uttar Pradesh, has put health authorities on alert.



The health experts’ concern arises from the fact that the exact cause of the deaths of children, aged between three and six years, is still unknown.



To investigate the cases, health officials are camping in the village and are are conducting medical check-ups for children. Talking to The Indian Express, Dr P K Jain, Chief Medical Officer, Badaun, said, “So far we have been able to identify three main symptoms among the deceased. These are malnutrition, pneumonia and high fever. We are still trying to find out the root cause of deaths and check whether there is a spread of any disease particularly in this village.”



The last death reported in the village was on January 8, when a child died with pneumonia-like symptoms and health officials have been camping in the village since then.

[alert]

Re: 13 kids die of infectious diseases in Uttar Pradesh village - contaminated water supply

Someone ought to send this last article to ProMED. This does sound like it might be several diseases, or just malnutrition and cold-linked illness, though. And two months is a VERY long time for this to be ongoing.

On further thought, there is something odd about this whole "outbreak". Five or six different etiologies (pneumonia, cholera, dysentery, typhoid, malnutrition, "viral fever", etc.) are mentioned, but with the exception of malnutrition, and possibly freezing to death (this is Uttar Pradesh, which is being hit by a cold wave), all the other possiblilities would affect adults too, and every article on this outbreak indicates that all the fatal cases are children under 6 years old. One might think of childhood diseases, but the reason that diseases like measles are thought of as childhood diseases is that they have a low enough CFR that most people survive them (or get vaccinated against them) and then don't get them against as adults. This "disease" doesn't fit that description. I think this is related to the cold weather, but it is far from clear how.