Dengue causes concern in capital city

The monsoon has once again brought back the threat of dengue fever outbreaks in the district and as always, the city Corporation wards are bearing the brunt of the dengue case load in the district.

Senior health officials point out that 42 of the 100 wards in the city Corporation, where public health activities are the responsibility of the civic body, are the most vulnerable. These include residential localities like Vattiyoorkavu, Sasthamangalam, Thirumala, Jagathy, Poojappura, and Medical College, from where dengue cases are being reported on a regular basis.

Dengue cases, which began to show a slight increase since April-May, is all set to climb now, with the rains setting in. Even though a host of pre-monsoon activities, including waste disposal, sanitation, and source-reduction, were undertaken in a campaign mode in the district as preventive measures, the seasonal dengue pattern is quite unlikely to change.

“Fever cases are beginning to show an increase. In the past five days, out of the 42 fever cases which were tested for dengue, 39 turned out to be positive, indicating the trend in the days to come,” a senior health official said.

An examination of dengue case load in the State and district would reveal that in the past five-six years, the incidence pattern of dengue has not changed at all. Dengue is endemic in the district, with two-thirds of the cases across the State being reported from the capital, out of which, 70 per cent are from the Corporation areas.

Action plan needed

The Central teams have, on many previous visits to the capital city, suggested that a specific action plan be charted for the city to reduce the annual dengue burden in the district.

Health officials also point out that Aedes mosquitoes are peri-domestic and that its breeding grounds are usually around a household. More than the civic administration, it should be the responsibility of individual residents to ensure that their premises are not breeding grounds for mosquitoes.

Health officials said that a meeting was being convened by the District Collector on Friday to chalk out a special plan of action for the city Corporation, to check the vector population and reduce the increasing incidence of dengue fever.