Snowy Owl
Retired in 2010, In Memoriam
Deadly virus threatens Maldivians in India
http://www.haveeru.com.mv/?page=engdetails&id=8653
http://www.haveeru.com.mv/?page=engdetails&id=8653
21 September 2006
Health officials from India have confirmed that there is a deadly flu being transmitted in Trivandrum and various other areas where there are large numbers of Maldivians, says Department of Public Health.
?Chicken Gungna?, as the virus is being called, is transmitted by mosquitoes (genus Aedes Egypti) which are used as temporary hosts. Aedes Egypti are generally smaller than other mosquitoes and tend to bite during the day time.
The symptoms are high fever which may be continuous, nausea, muscle stiffness, joint pains, and decrease in blood platelet count. The symptoms may last as long as two to three days, although the joint pains may persist. The fever can become very high on some occasions.
Indian health officials have stated that the virus is rapidly being transmitted through Kerala. The symptoms have been found in over 50,000 patients so far.
Rumors have said that 20 people have lost their lives to the disease in Cherthala. However, Health official P. K. Srimathi has said that laboratory tests have not yet confirmed this.
The Director General of Public Health, Ibrahim Shaheem, has said that the disease is a threat to all Maldivians living in the area. He said that there have not yet been any reported cases of Maldivians showing the symptoms of the disease.
?No Maldivian cases have been reported yet,? said Shaheem. ?But this is a great concern, and precautions must be taken. We have placed great importance on taking steps to reduce the mosquito population, which is why we are fogging extensively.?
?We recommend seeing a doctor immediately if similar symptoms appear,? continued Shaheem. ?If not, the threat of the disease will continue to grow.?
DPH said that they had already detected the presence of disease carrying mosquitoes in Male, such as those in India.
?Chicken Gungna? was recently discovered in April this year in Tamilnadu. The disease has since quickly spread to Kerala. The disease was first discovered in Africa in 1955 and is now plaguing several of the larger states in India, said an Indian health official.
The Press Trust of India has quoted India?s Federal Health Ministry that over 1.1 million cases have been reported in India.
Health officials from India have confirmed that there is a deadly flu being transmitted in Trivandrum and various other areas where there are large numbers of Maldivians, says Department of Public Health.
?Chicken Gungna?, as the virus is being called, is transmitted by mosquitoes (genus Aedes Egypti) which are used as temporary hosts. Aedes Egypti are generally smaller than other mosquitoes and tend to bite during the day time.
The symptoms are high fever which may be continuous, nausea, muscle stiffness, joint pains, and decrease in blood platelet count. The symptoms may last as long as two to three days, although the joint pains may persist. The fever can become very high on some occasions.
Indian health officials have stated that the virus is rapidly being transmitted through Kerala. The symptoms have been found in over 50,000 patients so far.
Rumors have said that 20 people have lost their lives to the disease in Cherthala. However, Health official P. K. Srimathi has said that laboratory tests have not yet confirmed this.
The Director General of Public Health, Ibrahim Shaheem, has said that the disease is a threat to all Maldivians living in the area. He said that there have not yet been any reported cases of Maldivians showing the symptoms of the disease.
?No Maldivian cases have been reported yet,? said Shaheem. ?But this is a great concern, and precautions must be taken. We have placed great importance on taking steps to reduce the mosquito population, which is why we are fogging extensively.?
?We recommend seeing a doctor immediately if similar symptoms appear,? continued Shaheem. ?If not, the threat of the disease will continue to grow.?
DPH said that they had already detected the presence of disease carrying mosquitoes in Male, such as those in India.
?Chicken Gungna? was recently discovered in April this year in Tamilnadu. The disease has since quickly spread to Kerala. The disease was first discovered in Africa in 1955 and is now plaguing several of the larger states in India, said an Indian health official.
The Press Trust of India has quoted India?s Federal Health Ministry that over 1.1 million cases have been reported in India.