Telangana: Dengue kills 12 in Warangal, fever cases on rise

WARANGAL: From the past few days, the state-run government hospitals especially in agency areas like Mulugu are witnessing a huge rush of patients suffering from dengue, malaria, and viral fever in erstwhile Warangal districts.

As many as 12 people died due to dengue as per official records, ten in Mulugu and two in Hanamkonda districts.

As rains receded garbage accumulated in drainage canals and the contaminated water overflowed in various colonies and on roads, resulting in the spread of contagious disease.

Poor sanitation, incomplete construction works of drains and not cleaning the vacant plots in urban areas are cited to be the major reasons for the steep rise in mosquito population.

There are 17 Primary Health Centres (PHC) in Mulugu district. All the hospitals are registering heavy rush of patients suffering from various health complications. Every day around 80 to 120 fever patients visit the government hospitals.

The health official of Eturnagaram PHC Sambaiah said that they are collecting the blood samples of patients who have symptoms of dengue and malaria and are sending them to MGM Hospital for testing.  

Many government hospitals in the erstwhile Warangal district do not have dengue testing kits and other facilities are required for carrying out the blood platelets count test and ELISA (Enzyme Linked Immuno Sorbent Assay) test to diagnose dengue fever.

Hospitals situated in agency and rural areas are referring the patients to the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial (MGM) hospital for conducting of Elisa tests.

The MGM hospital Superintendent Dr.V.Chandrasekhar said that they kept around 300 beds ready for the patients and also the ventilators and oxygen cylinders in case of emergency. The number of beds will be increased if needed, he added.

At present, there are around 182 patients undergoing treatment in the MGM hospital of whom 28 are dengue cases, seven malaria cases and 147 members sseasonal fever cases.

Patients consulting in private hospitals have to spend Rs.1,000 to Rs.1,500 for conducting dengue fever tests.  

Meanwhile, the district administration along with the officials of medical, health and municipal departments are on high alert and are taking all kinds of preventive measures to contain dengue outbreak. A contract worker of the Malaria department who was identified as Yerra Raju (43) died of suffocation while carrying out mosquito fogging in an under-construction apartment in Waddepally of Hanamkonda district.