Hyderabad: Huge increase in malaria cases

Hyderabad: The city has seen an increase in the incidence of malaria with 120 cases being recorded from January to May 2017.

This is a huge increase from the norm of the years between 2013 and 2016, when only 50 cases were during this time period each year.

The increase in the numbers means that there will be more cases during the season, explained a senior officer in the epidemiology wing.

A senior health officer said, “The number of cases during the dry season is taken as an indication of the number of expected cases in the season. This year malaria too will see an increase and hence people have to take proper prevention methods against mosquito bites.”

The best is to keep oneself completely covered, use mosquito repellent creams and also herbal mosquito repellents for protection, doctors advised.

The Telangana state medical and health department has recorded 3,020 cases of malaria in 2016 and in the first six months of 2017 there have been 700 cases reported, according to sources.

The numbers are the same as it was in the last four years state officers. The reason for the sudden and massive increase in the number of malaria cases is being examined.