Orissa - Mystery disease: kills eight in two days

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Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

What is odd, and IMO troubling, is that there are 40 families in the village, and only four have reported infections. Something of that nature would tend to infect everyone (or at least a even distribution of cases). Most of the deaths are in the Majhi family. That is more consistent with person-to-person spread.

 

[alert]

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

This story is notably different than every other one in this thread, and it indicates hundreds of cases, not just a couple dozen. I don't know if I trust this one, especially considering who is dead already. In a village with 40 families (maybe 300 people total?) if hundreds were ill, that would be essentially the entire village. This source is questionable.

http://www.odishatoday.com/district...toll_raises_250909-437568023657923658723.html

Unknown disease kills 2 more, toll raises to 11
By Santanu Barad
Last updated: 09/23/2009 21:03:27
Text Font Size: S- / S+

Berhampur ( Orissa ): Two more Kandhamal people suffering from an unknown disease were dead at the MKCG medical hospital here on Tuesday.

Notably, eight persons had been killed and hundreds of people were suffering from an unknown and undetected disease at the Rudrigaon village under Daringibadi block of the Kandhamal district.

According to sources, hundreds of people were being suffering from this unknown disease in the periphery area particularly in the Rudrigaon village of Diringibadi block.

Eight people had already dead and several others had been admitted at various hospitals in Kandhamal and even few people had been sifted to MKCG Medical here. Among the people admitted at the MKCG two; one Rashmita Majhi and another Miraim Majhi were declared dead on Tuesday here at the MKCG in the city.

The disease that killed as many as 10 people could not be detected Even the people were leaving the village in fear as the local doctors were failing to convince the tribal people.
The medical experts who had visited the areas had confirmed that it was not the malaria. Now, it is to be seen weather these people were dying out of the food poison after taking the local mushroom.

 

[alert]

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

An older source. While the children died first, the adults in the family are now dying. The time difference is onset and death suggests that the adults might have caught this from the children.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...y-death-claims-2-more/articleshow/5048282.cms

Kandhamal's mystery death claims 2 more
TNN 24 September 2009, 05:29am IST
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BHUBANESWAR/ BERHAMPUR: The state government rushed an expert team from the state capital to try and unravel the mystery behind the series of deaths
at Gudrigaon in Kandhamal district, even as two more persons succumbed to their illnesses on Wednesday. With this, the death toll in the village has touched 10, including six children, during the past five days.

Earlier a four-member doctors' team from MKCG Medical College, Berhampur, had visited Gudrigaon in Saramuli gram panchayat to study the exact cause leading to the deaths. But the team is yet to announce its assessment. Pending that, another team of experts from Bhubaneswar, including medical specialists from the Regional Medical and Research Centre, would visit the village to ascertain the reason of the deaths, health and family welfare minister Prasanna Acharya said.

The dance of death started in Gudrigaon on Saturday when the mysterious disease claimed two lives. The next day six more lives were lost, triggering severe panic in the region. Over a dozen have also been reported suffering from the disease, the source of which has remained a puzzle so far. On Wednesday, two more persons undergoing treatment at MKCG hospital died. At least 12 others are admitted at a government hospital in Daringibadi.

Officials had initially suspected that the deaths were due to either food poisoning caused by consumption of wild mushrooms or cerebral malaria. But subsequently doctors discounted the possibility of malaria. The expert team from MKCG medical college, in its report, has indicated that the deaths were caused by "food poisoning". "Our provisional report has suggested that the deaths were due to food poisoning," said Chakradhar Majhi, who headed the experts team from MKCG.

The chief district medical officer (in-charge) Kandhamal, Jatin Patnaik, said the situation in the village was under control. No fresh case was reported from the area and the condition of patients undergoing treatment in hospitals was improving. At least four mobile health units have been pressed into duty for checking the health of the villagers, the CDMO said. An ambulance was also stationed at Gudurigaon.

Meanwhile, district collector Krishan Kumar has directed all field-level functionaries, including anganwadi workers and ASHA activists, to sensitize people about different health and sanitation issues.

 

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Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Not much new in this article. Different articles continue to paint drastically different pictures of what is going on, so I will continue to post everything I find.

http://www.topnews.in/2-more-succumbs-unknown-disease-kandhamal-s-tribal-belt-2217654

2 more succumbs to ‘Unknown disease’ in Kandhamal’s tribal belt
Submitted by Piyush Diwan on Thu, 09/24/2009 - 14:04. FeaturedHealth UpdateTNMOrissa
An unknown disease turned more deadly on Wednesday as two more persons lost their life in Gudrika village of Kandhamal district in the state of Orissa, taking the death toll to 11.

Confirming the news, Jatin Patnaik (Chief District Medical Officer, Kandhamal) said: "Two people died at MKCG Medical College and Hospital in Berhampur this morning. Both were adults."

The victims were admitted initially at Daringbadi hospital.

However, when their condition deteriorated, the two were shifted to MKCG hospital on Wednesday.

Notably, over 18 people are already admitted at the Daringbadi hospital.

It may be recalled that eight people had died of an unknown disease in this locality earlier this week.

Meanwhile, the state government has decided to send a new team to the village from Berhampur and Bhubaneswar.

Speaking with the reporters, Orissa's health minister, Prasanna Acharya, said: "A team will rush to Gudikia from Berhampur and Bhubaneswar to investigate the case."

Earlier, a four-member expert team was also rushed from the MKCG Medical College and Hospital to uncover the accurate reason of the death of these villagers.

Initially, it was understood that people were falling sick due to food poisoning following consumption of wild mushrooms.

However, later the doctors felt that the patients might be in the clutch of dangerous malaria.

 

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Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

This is a different picture again. I believe six of the eight who died in the first 48 hours were children, not just four. This one would be consistent with consumption of a toxin.

http://www.rxpgnews.com/medicalnews/Two-more-die-of-suspected-food-poisoning-in-Orissa_194748.shtml

Two more die of suspected food poisoning in Orissa

Sep 23, 2009 - 1:25:45 PM
'Doctors are still camping in the village. There is no report of further illness,' Jatin Patnaik, chief district medical officer, told IANS.







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By IANS, [RxPG] Bhubaneswar, Sep 23 - Two more people died of suspected food poisoning Wednesday in Orissa's Kandhamal district, raising to 10 the death toll in last weekend's contaminated food tragedy, health authorities said here.

'Two people died at Maharaja Krishna Chandra Gajapati Medical College and Hospital at Berhampur. While one person died Tuesday, another died Wednesday. Both were adults,' Bikash Patnaik, joint director of the health department, told IANS here.

Dozens of people fell ill over the weekend after reportedly consuming some contaminated food in Gudrigaon village under Saramuli gram panchayat, some 200 km from district headquarters Phulbani.

While 8 people, including four children, died within 48 hours, officials said most of the people with signs of the illness were discharged after treatment.

'Doctors are still camping in the village. There is no report of further illness,' Jatin Patnaik, chief district medical officer, told IANS.

Investigations were still on to determine the exact cause of the illness, he added.

 

[Snowy Owl]

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Thank you again Alert,

From what I know there should be about 20 or so deaths by tomorrow as expected by MD in situ.

Snowy

 

[Rwilmer]

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Thank you again Alert,

From what I know there should be about 20 or so deaths by tomorrow as expected by MD in situ.

Snowy

Do you know by chance what the current diagnosis they are going with right now?

 

[alert]

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Thank you again Alert,

From what I know there should be about 20 or so deaths by tomorrow as expected by MD in situ.

Snowy

That would be really bad. Can you give us a link to that source? Also, do they think this is contagious? How many are ill?

 

[Snowy Owl]

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Not yet any official suly statement from Dlhi or Pune, but Orissa is in a particular position with some specificities.

Tomorrow, (Friday afternoon is when Health agency send bad news so it is crunched by week end news. (I have work few yrs in Media and we only must publish bad news on Friday afternoon)

Snowy

 

[alert]

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

After eight (or nine?) died on Saturday and Sunday, there have only been at most three deaths total over the past three days. If nine people die on Thursday and Friday, something odd would be going on.

 

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Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

And a ProMed posting. Finally. Please send the first post in the thread to ProMed - while the article ProMed used does not mention fever, others in this thread, including the first article, do.

http://www.promedmail.org/pls/otn/f..._BACK_PAGE,F2400_P1001_PUB_MAIL_ID:1000,79375

Archive Number 20090924.3351
Published Date 24-SEP-2009
Subject PRO/EDR> Undiagnosed illness - India (04): (OR), RFI

UNDIAGNOSED ILLNESS - INDIA (04): (OR), REQUEST FOR INFORMATION
***********************************************
A ProMED-mail post
<http://www.promedmail.org>
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
<http://www.isid.org>

Date: Wed 23 Oct 2009
Source: Kalinga Times [edited]
<http://www.kalingatimes.com/odisha_news/news2009/20090923_Deaths_due_to_unknown_disease_rise_to_10.htm>


The deaths due to an unknown disease in Kandhamal district of Odisha
increased to 10 on Wed 23 Oct 2009, with 2 more persons breathing
their last at the MKCG Hospital at Berhampur.

Although the 1st death took place at Gudrigaon village of Kandhamal 6
days ago, the authorities had not been able to conduct the necessary
examination to know the cause of the deaths so far.

Even as the state government had sent a medical team, the death toll
was likely to rise, as 10 more persons were admitted to different
hospitals.

All the deaths had taken place in Gudrigaon village so far, though
some people from a neighbouring village had been taken ill with
similar symptoms.

While some were of the view that deaths could be due to cerebral
malaria, others were suspecting that the deaths were due to
consumption of poisonous mushrooms.

Meanwhile, a team of medical experts from the Regional Medical
Research Centre in Bhubaneswar left for Kandhamal to inquire about
the cause of the deaths, as they were suspecting that the deaths
could have taken place due to some viral infection.

--
Communicated by:
Andrew S.<mathleteowl@aol.com>


[It is very difficult to know what is happening without further
information. Orissa is not a high risk area for malaria, and the
report does not mention fever as part of the symptoms, which -- if
true -- rules out malaria with a high probability. ProMED will be
glad to post further information on the outbreak.

For information on Orissa State, see <http://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orissa>

 

[alert]

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

One of the links in the above ProMed report is this one from 2007: Simliar epidemiology (all within one week), same symptoms. The moderator suspected Nipah on this one. Nipah is definitely on the short list for the current outbreak, but the method of spread would be bizarre. Perhaps the food was contaminated with infected bat droppings? Either way, this shows that Nipah should be considered as it does exist in northeastern India, and would be consistent with the symptoms and high apparent CFR.

http://www.promedmail.org/pls/otn/f...,F2400_P1001_USE_ARCHIVE:1001,20071009.3318,Y

UNDIAGNOSED DISEASE- INDIA (MANIPUR): REQUEST FOR INFORMATION
*************************************************************
A ProMED-mail post
<http://www.promedmail.org>
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
<http://www.isid.org>

Date: Sun 7 Oct 2007
Source: The Telegraph (Calcutta) [edited]
<http://www.telegraphindia.com/1071008/asp/northeast/story_8406647.asp>


India (Manipur) - mystery ailment kills 7: request for information
------------------------------------------------------------------
A supposedly mysterious disease has caused 7 deaths in a border area
without doctors has set alarm bells ringing in the Manipur capital. Health
minister P Parijat Singh today despatched a medical team to Moreh,
bordering Myanmar, to detect the disease that has spread quickly in the
villages along the boundary over the past week [1-6 Oct 2007]. The
additional director of public health, Th Biren Singh, said the state health
directorate received an SOS from Chandel district yesterday [6 Oct 2007].

Patients suffering from the disease have complained of high fever, stomach
pain, and vomiting. Health department officials said some of the victims
had convulsions and seizures before they died. The directorate is still
clueless what the killer ailment is since the symptoms are common to
several diseases, including gastroenteritis, cholera, dysentery, and acute
stomach infection.

We have received preliminary information of some deaths in the border town
in the past few days. We sent a medical team there today and will do
everything necessary to contain the outbreak, the health minister said,
ruling out the possibility of the disease assuming epidemic proportions.

The first death occurred on 28 Sep 2007 and the last on 5 Oct 2007. We are
preparing to send another batch of medical staff once we receive a detailed
report. We will also send in specialists, Biren Singh said. He said blood
samples of patients would be collected and tested to identify the disease
type. The disease could have been triggered by contaminated water. We are
in the process of finding the exact cause, the health minister said.

Moreh, the main trade link between India and Myanmar, has only one primary
health care centre, which was upgraded to a community health centre earlier
this year. A couple of months later, the community health centre was
shifted to Sugnu in neighbouring Thoubal district, as the state government
planned to construct a 50 bed hospital in the town. The medical staff at
the health centre were also moved to Thoubal along with the new recruits,
rendering the Moreh unit defunct.

Acknowledging that healthcare programmes had failed in the border town
because of lack of adequate manpower, Parijat Singh said the government
would soon deploy trained personnel at the health centre.

--
communicated by:
ProMED-mail
<promed@promedmail.org

[The description of this "mysterious disease" is insufficiently specific or
consistent to suggest a probable explanation. Contagion, inadequate water
supply and defective waste disposal, or inadequate health care facilities
could be responsible for this incident. The predominant feature appears to
be gastrointestinal illness, but the occurrence of convulsions and seizures
preceding the deaths of a few patients might be indicative of the
occurrence of some more unusual disease such as Nipah virus infection,
which has been reported elsewhere in the north east of India in recent
times. Further information from any informed source in the region would be
welcomed.

A interactive map of the India-Myanmar border region can be viewed at
<http://www.maplandia.com/india/mizoram/>. - Mod.CP]

 

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Kandhamal's mystery death claims 2 more
TNN 24 September 2009, 05:29am IST


BHUBANESWAR/ BERHAMPUR: The state government rushed an expert team from the state capital to try and unravel the mystery behind the series of deaths
at Gudrigaon in Kandhamal district, even as two more persons succumbed to their illnesses on Wednesday. With this, the death toll in the village has touched 10, including six children, during the past five days.

Earlier a four-member doctors' team from MKCG Medical College, Berhampur, had visited Gudrigaon in Saramuli gram panchayat to study the exact cause leading to the deaths. But the team is yet to announce its assessment. Pending that, another team of experts from Bhubaneswar, including medical specialists from the Regional Medical and Research Centre, would visit the village to ascertain the reason of the deaths, health and family welfare minister Prasanna Acharya said.

The dance of death started in Gudrigaon on Saturday when the mysterious disease claimed two lives. The next day six more lives were lost, triggering severe panic in the region. Over a dozen have also been reported suffering from the disease, the source of which has remained a puzzle so far. On Wednesday, two more persons undergoing treatment at MKCG hospital died. At least 12 others are admitted at a government hospital in Daringibadi.
Officials had initially suspected that the deaths were due to either food poisoning caused by consumption of wild mushrooms or cerebral malaria. But subsequently doctors discounted the possibility of malaria. The expert team from MKCG medical college, in its report, has indicated that the deaths were caused by "food poisoning". "Our provisional report has suggested that the deaths were due to food poisoning," said Chakradhar Majhi, who headed the experts team from MKCG.
The chief district medical officer (in-charge) Kandhamal, Jatin Patnaik, said the situation in the village was under control. No fresh case was reported from the area and the condition of patients undergoing treatment in hospitals was improving. At least four mobile health units have been pressed into duty for checking the health of the villagers, the CDMO said. An ambulance was also stationed at Gudurigaon.

Meanwhile, district collector Krishan Kumar has directed all field-level functionaries, including anganwadi workers and ASHA activists, to sensitize people about different health and sanitation issues.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...y-death-claims-2-more/articleshow/5048282.cms

 

[alert]

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Post #52 is a duplicate of post #43.

But it did make me notice that the official who is quoted in the article also has the last name "Mahji", so that last name might not indicate all the victims being in the same family. Perhaps that name is not a family name, but a geographical name, or a tribute to an ancestor or local folk hero. That greatly changes the epidemiological picture. Now we are back to 10-11 deaths among 25+ cases spread across several families (and maybe two village). At this point, Nipah (or a Nipah-like virus) is my leading candidate.

 

[alert]

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Lots of news here. I could bold the whole article. Many of the suspected cases that recovered quickly did not have this disease (and that's what threw off the epidemiology - and why some articles indicated a second village or hundreds of patients). I had been wondering about that. Apparently there are only four suspected mystery disease patients in the main hospital. And it is mostly children, something we have seen in previous Nipah outbreaks.

This is starting to sound more like Nipah. I doubt there is a lab in Orissa that can detect Nipah. I hope samples are sent to the NIV in Pune, or even to the CDC for confirmation.

http://www.hindu.com/2009/09/25/stories/2009092551780300.htm

Panic continues over unidentified killer disease


Three more children affected with unknown ailment from Gudrgaon village in Kandhamal district are admitted to MKCG Medical College Hospital on Thursday.

BERHAMPUR: Panic of the still unidentified killer disease continues at remote Gudrigaon village of Daringbadi village in Kandhamal district.

Three ailing children from the village were admitted in the MKCG medical college hospital in the city. Another patient from the village is still under treatment in the medical college hospital. The Ganjam district administration is looking after the treatment of the patients from Gudrigaon, said the Berhampur sub-collector, Ajit Mishra.

Around 24 persons from the Gudrigaon village were admitted in the Daringbadi hospital. As this hospital with 30 beds got overcrowded, all the patients from Gudrigaon were housed in a building of a local NGO, said the Chief District Medical Officer of Kandhamal, Jatin Patnaik. According to him majority of these patients were allegedly suffering from common ailments, but were panic stricken by the 11 deaths that have occurred in the village during past week.

The CDMO after his visit to Gudrigaon said no new case of ailment was reported from the village.

The team of experts from Regional Medical Research Centre (RMRC) in Bhubaneswar also reached the village on Thursday to investigate the reason behind the recent deaths. The CDMO said these experts suspected that the deaths may have been caused by the infection of some killer virus. It may be noted that physicians are yet to ascertain the reason behind the deaths at Gudrigaon village. Earlier these deaths were to have been caused by food poisoning or malaria. But now it is suspected that deaths may have been caused by some other reason.

 

[Snowy Owl]

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

If I can write sumpin from experience after Nipah it will be H1N1.

Snowy

 

[alert]

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

If I can write sumpin from experience after Nipah it will be H1N1.

Snowy

Do you mean the changing diagnosis on this outbreak? Or do you mean you think there is a Nipah pandemic coming?

 

[Snowy Owl]

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

As with the Bees, we can face one or two virus or bacterias but not too many. It leads to a downturn of immune system and therefore generate a global pandemic. THE ONE WE KNOW FOR NOW IS H1N1.


Snowy

 

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Blood samples collected from villagers

BERHAMPUR: Blood and bone marrow samples were collected from the patients from Gudrigaon village in Kandhamal district on Friday for tests to ascertain the reason behind the recent deaths in the village. The samples were collected by a three-member team from Regional Medical Research Center from Bhubaneswar. The team was led by additional director of RMRC, Bhagirathi Dwivedi. The collected samples of blood and bone marrow would be sent to National Institute of Virology in Pune.

http://www.hindu.com/2009/09/26/stories/2009092652700300.htm

 

[alert]

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Re: Orissa - Mystery disease kills eight in two days

Note that another one of the professionals has the last name Mahji. Common name there, I guess.

http://www.orissadiary.com/ShowDistrictNews.asp?id=14637

Orissa BJP sends team to Kandhamal to observe death by unknown disease
Friday, September 25, 2009 Email StoryFeedbackPrint Story
Bhubaneswar: A six person team of Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) has proceeded to Gudrigaon of Kandhamal district on Friday to observe the death by unknown disease. In this team Karendra Majhi MLA, Bhagirathi Majhi MLA, Hitesh Bagarti MLA,Pratap Sarangi MLA Former MLA Sanchita Mohanty and Ashok Sahu are included.T hey will observe the reason of mass death , local environment etc.