The Health Department has intensified control measures against dengue in Coimbatore district following a gradual rise in the number of cases.
The district reported 48 cases in July, which increased to 61 in August. Eight cases of the viral disease, which is spread through aedes aegypti mosquitoes, were reported as of Wednesday.
Health Department officials say that the number of dengue cases reported this year is higher than that of the previous year due to various factors, primarily because of prolonged rain of the southwest monsoon.
“Unlike last year, the district has been getting intermittent rain since May. This leads to collection of freshwater in waste materials and other places, aiding breeding of mosquitoes,” said Deputy Director of Health Services P. Aruna.
According to her, though health workers clear peri-domestic breeding sources, people continue to litter waste, causing collection of rainwater and breeding of mosquitoes.
“There were 94 hotspots in the district in May. With regular source reduction works and other control measures, we have brought down the number to 60,” she said.
To deal with the current situation, the Health Department has instructed medical officers of all primary health centres (PHC) to track the location of all outpatient fever cases getting reported. Fever camps and collection of samples are arranged in such locations.
“We have doubled the number of tests compared to the previous month. The number of samples collected by primary level healthcare facilities and sent to the public health laboratory stood around 500 in July. The size of the samples increased to more than 1,000 last month,” said Dr. Aruna.
Private facilities, which conduct tests on their own, inform the Department when a positive case is reported.
On Wednesday, the Department organised a meeting for private practitioners and primary healthcare providers on ‘Prevention and Management of Communicable Diseases’ and sensitised them. The meeting addressed mpox surveillance, management of dengue, leptospirosis, scrub typhus, malaria, and H1N1 in adults and children.
“We have emphasised the importance of early referral and health education through the doctors to the community,” added Dr. Aruna.
Published - September 05, 2024 07:16 pm IST
