Kerala
KOCHI, April 19, 2016
Updated: April 19, 2016 05:51 IST
Kala-azar outbreak in Pathanapuram
K.S. SUDHI
Bone marrow test on 63-year-old woman confirms disease
An indigenous case of kala-azar or black fever outbreak has been reported from Chempanaruvi, near Pathanapuram, in Kollam district, causing concern among public health experts.
Pathologists of Government Medical College Hospital (MCH), Thiruvananthapuram, have confirmed the disease in a 63-year-old woman through a bone marrow test and the public health experts collected the vector sandfly from Chempanaruvi, confirming the fears of the outbreak. The blood-sucking pest, which is one-third the size of mosquitoes, is found in moist mud and sand.
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In most of the earlier incidents reported in Kerala, the patients were either migrant labours or people from States where the disease was prevalent.
This was considered to be the second endemic case being reported among Keralites with no history of travel outside the State. The earlier one was from Thenmala in 2005, the pathologist told The Hindu .
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http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Kochi/kalaazar-outbreak-in-pathanapuram/article8492128.ece
