Dengue toll rises to 6: Min flags off special mobile health care units

Chennai: Dengue death toll in the state rose to six after a 2-year-old succumbed to the fever on Tuesday.

Shafik, son of Sadhik, a daily wage labourer in Satyavanimuthu Nagar in Ennore died in the morning at the Institute of Child Health, Egmore after suffering complications like bleeding. He was admitted to the hospital after four days of fever, doctors, said, after things had got worse.

Doctors in the city request parents to take their children to the hospital even when they feel the slightest bit feverish and not to self-medicate. “By the time a child is brought to the hospital, he has gone through five stages already. First, the parent gives the child any antibiotic tablet or syrup available at home.

Next, they refer to old prescriptions and consume that medicine. They have to realise that these medicines can cause the virus to become resistant to medication,” said Dr Jayasri.

“Only when the fever doesn't come down do they even refer a doctor. But, the blunder that most parents do is to refer to a local clinic. The doctor there is usually not equipped to test for dengue or any such fevers,” she adds.

Finally, by the time the child is referred to a government hospital or one equipped to treat such cases, it is too late, she says.

Health minister C. Vijayabhaskar on Tuesday flagged off 82 special mobile healthcare units and around 11,634 fogging machines have been deployed to prevent breeding of mosquitoes. He said that coordination between the state health department and the local bodies to create awareness, availability of blood and medicines have been done at all public health centres and government hospitals across the state. The number of centres to diagnose dengue through enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay( ELIZA) has been increased to 131 this year.

“Stringent action will be taken if houses and other complexes are found to be having materials that can act as breeding ground for mosquitoes. Every Thursday has been marked to observe ‘Dengue Prevention Day’ in public spaces, schools and hospitals,” the health minister said.

Parents are taking preventive measures, but sometimes do not know the right ways, says Dr Deepa Hariharan. “They know to protect their children, to put mosquito repellant at night, but they do not know that the Aedes mosquito bites during the day,” she said. She also urged parents to rush their children to the doctor as soon as possible.