The death of a boy from Mulbagal town due to diphtheria has triggered panic among citizens and personnel of the Health Department personnel have already begun their awareness campaign on preventing the disease.
Sahil Pasha (11), a resident of Kurubarpet in Mulbagal, died at the Indira Gandhi institute of Child Health Hospital at Bengaluru on Friday. He was shifted there after initial treatment at a local hospital for throat pain and fever. A cough sample test confirmed that the deceased was suffering from diphtheria.
According to District Health and Family Welfare Officer Vijaykumar, the boy contracted diphtheria as he was not given the DPT injection (combination vaccines against diphtheria, whooping cough and tetanus) when he was six-years-old.
Doctors and other health department personnel visited the Kurubarpet locality and collected cough samples from 114 children. The staff has camped in the area after four children tested positive for diphtheria. It has now been decided to administer the vaccine to all children aged below six years in the locality as a precautionary measure.
Four deaths last year
Four children died of diphtheria at Noogalubande locality in Mulbagal last year. Kurubarpet and Noogalubande are located side by side. Unhygienic conditions and mushrooming of ice candy factories in and around both the localities is suspected to be the major cause for the spread of diphtheria among children.
Tahasildar Pravinkumar has directed City Municipal Council (CMC) authorities to take measures to maintain cleanliness.
