Nellore: The number of patients suffering from dengue and other viral fevers has been rising in Nellore district spreading panic in public. Both private and government hospitals are full with patients suffering from fever.
In Nellore alone, over 300 people arrive at major private and government hospitals every day suffering from fever.
Many of the hospitals are unable to provide beds to the mounting number of patients turning up for treatment.
Dr M.V. Ramanaiah of Peoples Poly Clinic in Nellore said that there was no bed available to accommodate new patients and every inch of space in the hospital is occupied by patients coming for treatment.
Refuting claims by the Medical and Health Department that there were only 86 dengue positive cases reported in the district till date this year, he said that around 50 per cent of the 80 odd viral fevers cases they are dealing everyday are dengue positive. He said there were 20 patients from Talluru village in Dagadarthi mandal undergoing treatment in the hospital for dengue fevers. He said they are well equipped to diagnose dengue and provide platelets to the patients.
He added that the incidence of dengue is high in several villages across the district. Paracetamol tablets and injection of platelets in case their number is down is the only treatment for dengue.
Referring to government insistence on blood examination only at the Government General Hospital to confirm dengue, the superintendent of the Poly Clinic Dr Ajay Kumar claimed that the results are negative often because dengue shows up after a week while blood samples are collected within first three days of fever.
When contacted, District Medical and Health Officer Dr Varasundaram said that they are sending teams to habitations wherever more than five fever cases are reported.
He claimed that only 86 dengue fever cases have been identified so this year in the district and advised medical officers to pay more attention in treating typhoid cases.
He attributed the outbreak of viral fevers to the congenial climate for large scale breeding of mosquitoes in clean water.
Underlining the need for prevention, he said they are taking steps to spray cyphenothrin, a synthetic pyrethroid insecticide, mixed with kerosene to prevent mosquito breeding in homes and outside as per the directions of district collector R. Muthyala Raju.
Dr Varasundaram said they will hold a meeting with panchayat secretaries and medical officers across the district on Tuesday to take up a sanitation drive in a big way in all the habitations to contain mosquito breeding and vector borne diseases.
