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[FONT=verdana,trebuchet ms,georgia]Japanese encephalitis hits Gorakhpur[/FONT] <hr color="#9a0000" width="100%">
Aradhana Sharma
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Saturday, November 11, 2006 (Gorakhpur):
Last year more than 1000 children had died of Japanese encephalitis in Gorakhpur.
As the disease has a pattern of striking with intensity every alternate year, this year its impact is less.
However, this year over 1600 cases of different types of encephalitis have been reported in Gorakhpur and 310 people have died, most of them children, from it.
Ignored cases
But unlike dengue and chikungunya that hit the headlines, these cases have mostly gone ignored.
For the past 15 days, eight-year-old Rinki has been battling with Japanese encephalitis.
Her mother tries to do what she can to soothe her daughter, but Rinki's condition is not very encouraging.
She has barely been conscious, she can't speak and doesn't recognise her mother.
"She is not eating or drinking anything. She has fever and gets convulsions. She is being given medicines and food through a tube," said Sitadevi, Mother.
With temperatures falling, the disease is on the decline. But even now, there are 75 children in the pediatrics ward of the Gorakhpur Medical College.
Incomplete treatment
Even as some recover and leave, many others return with relapses. Amit was discharged six months ago, but now he's back with a repeat attack.
And this time, his brain is so severely affected that he doesn't even respond to his name. His father feels it's his fault.
"I stopped the medication as I thought he was better. But doctors here say that I should not have stopped. I accept that," said Ramesh Chandra Mishra, Father.
Though many like Amit improve after medication, some are not as fortunate. Twenty per cent of the children affected by the brain fever are either mentally or physically disabled for life.
A year later
Last year, there had been over a 1000 deaths at Gorakhpur Medical College. There was a lot of media attention and political attention right from the State's Governor to the Union Health Minister and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
Special funds and staff had been sent. But this year, the deaths haven't made headlines and the issue too has slipped into oblivion.
Last year, the pediatrics ward was given eight ventilators, but three of those don't work now.
The ICU has not been sanctioned new staff and the hospital has been hiring nurses on short contracts. Last year additonal doctors had been sent, but there's been no such concern this year.
A new epidemic ward promised last year is still under construction and it hasn't been sanctioned any staff.
"Due to dengue and chikungunya in whole of the country, the deaths are about 150 or so, so two times of deaths because of viral encephalitis has occurred only in BRD medical college, leave alone other private and district hospitals," said Dr A K Rathi, HOD, Paediatrics, Gorakhpur Medical College.
"I have a strong feeling that we are second class citizens in our own country," he added.
In the Gorakhpur Medical College alone, there have been over 300 deaths this year, which forces one to wonder how the dengue epidemic in the Capital hogged the limelight and shook everyone from their slumber.
But hundreds of deaths each year, mostly those of children, in the interior of the country evoke little response.
http://www.ndtv.com/morenews/showmo...Japanese+encephalitis+hits+Gorakhpur&id=96180
Watch story
Saturday, November 11, 2006 (Gorakhpur):
Last year more than 1000 children had died of Japanese encephalitis in Gorakhpur.
As the disease has a pattern of striking with intensity every alternate year, this year its impact is less.
However, this year over 1600 cases of different types of encephalitis have been reported in Gorakhpur and 310 people have died, most of them children, from it.
Ignored cases
But unlike dengue and chikungunya that hit the headlines, these cases have mostly gone ignored.
For the past 15 days, eight-year-old Rinki has been battling with Japanese encephalitis.
Her mother tries to do what she can to soothe her daughter, but Rinki's condition is not very encouraging.
She has barely been conscious, she can't speak and doesn't recognise her mother.
"She is not eating or drinking anything. She has fever and gets convulsions. She is being given medicines and food through a tube," said Sitadevi, Mother.
With temperatures falling, the disease is on the decline. But even now, there are 75 children in the pediatrics ward of the Gorakhpur Medical College.
Incomplete treatment
Even as some recover and leave, many others return with relapses. Amit was discharged six months ago, but now he's back with a repeat attack.
And this time, his brain is so severely affected that he doesn't even respond to his name. His father feels it's his fault.
"I stopped the medication as I thought he was better. But doctors here say that I should not have stopped. I accept that," said Ramesh Chandra Mishra, Father.
Though many like Amit improve after medication, some are not as fortunate. Twenty per cent of the children affected by the brain fever are either mentally or physically disabled for life.
A year later
Last year, there had been over a 1000 deaths at Gorakhpur Medical College. There was a lot of media attention and political attention right from the State's Governor to the Union Health Minister and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
Special funds and staff had been sent. But this year, the deaths haven't made headlines and the issue too has slipped into oblivion.
Last year, the pediatrics ward was given eight ventilators, but three of those don't work now.
The ICU has not been sanctioned new staff and the hospital has been hiring nurses on short contracts. Last year additonal doctors had been sent, but there's been no such concern this year.
A new epidemic ward promised last year is still under construction and it hasn't been sanctioned any staff.
"Due to dengue and chikungunya in whole of the country, the deaths are about 150 or so, so two times of deaths because of viral encephalitis has occurred only in BRD medical college, leave alone other private and district hospitals," said Dr A K Rathi, HOD, Paediatrics, Gorakhpur Medical College.
"I have a strong feeling that we are second class citizens in our own country," he added.
In the Gorakhpur Medical College alone, there have been over 300 deaths this year, which forces one to wonder how the dengue epidemic in the Capital hogged the limelight and shook everyone from their slumber.
But hundreds of deaths each year, mostly those of children, in the interior of the country evoke little response.
http://www.ndtv.com/morenews/showmo...Japanese+encephalitis+hits+Gorakhpur&id=96180