Siddha hospitals told not to treat dengue patients

Chennai: With the increased number of dengue cases and deaths in the state, the public health department has instructed all Siddha hospitals to refrain from treating dengue patients and not to admit any dengue patient as in-patients.

Blaming unqualified and inexperienced medical practitioners for the rise in number of deaths, health department officials said that patients should be referred to tertiary care government hospitals for better prevention and control measures against dengue.

“Government hospitals are equipped with all facilities such as experienced health practitioners, diagnostic center, equipment and blood components transfusion unit for dengue care. It is very difficult for the patient to recover if they were referred late to tertiary center. Therefore, the Siddha hospitals should not admit dengue patients as in-patients or treat them with herbal medicines such as Nilavembu Kudineer,” said director of public health, Dr K Kolandaisamy.

State health department which conducted a regular review meeting last month issued guidelines under which people are to get treatment for dengue at government hospitals only.

Doctors at Siddha hospitals in the city say that though herbal medicines such as Nilavembu Kudineer, papaya leaf juice and Nilavaembu Kayasam is being distributed at government hospitals and Primary Health Centres, there are no proven results against dengue. “Lack of research and database to verify the use of such medicines against dengue has left them unaccepted for health department to use them for dengue treatment,” said a doctor at Siddha hospital.