Old thread is here
Here are copies of the last few entries in the previous thread.
Olymom – at 14:18
There are two separate events unfolding here. The dengue fever and the Nepal 8 deaths. I really hope folks will take a deep breath and listen to Albert on the many dengue fever cases. He is there — he knows the country. I’ve had the good fortune to travel to India on two occasions and it is so far different that North America or Europe that it is beyond words to describe. It really is a different reality — but I have a very hard time thinking that all those very smart Indian doctors, nurses, lab workers, public health people wouldn’t be tuning into cases that were H5N1 instead of dengue (on respiratory stuff alone). It’s a dengue outbreak in a country that has had dengue historically. (Occam’s razor). India is NOT Indonesia — or China.
The Nepal 8 are far more worrisome. Tom DVM suggests infectious encelphalitis — there could be some other nastys in play in a region that has no water treatment, no vaccinations for children, no heat but wood, and no medical services (and no money to pay for services if there are).
Let’s dial back the worry level a tad — the next week will be interesting, but we’ve been here before (confirmed clusters in Turkey, Karo, etc).
Niah – at 14:21
India News
Chikungunya enters Bengal, more dengue cases Kolkata, Oct 15 :
At least two cases of chikungunya fever have been confirmed in West Bengal while more dengue patients have been admitted to hospitals.
The state government has confirmed that two of the seven blood samples sent to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune for detection of the chikungunya virus had tested positive.
[snip]
According to official figures, around 1,500 people in about 15 villages in Baduria and Swarupnagar are down with fever.
Dengue is caused by a virus spread by the female Aedes aegypti mosquito that breeds in clear stagnant water. It is marked by high fever, skin rashes and joint pain. A sharp drop in blood platelet counts can prove fatal.
Chikungunya, marked by pain in joints, is caused by a virus that is also spread by the same type of mosquito.
[snip]
Meanwhile, one person at Lalbag in Murshidabad district and six people in Kolkata also tested positive for dengue Friday last, reports said.
[snip]
Though the mayor said the situation was not alarming, especially compared to the previous year when some 1,000 people were affected and 12 deaths occurred, more cases were reported since.
AnnieB – at 16:32
With regards to the questions about the dengue fever (or whatever) not affecting the very young .. if you read about dengue fever (try wikipedia), there are several varieties (which also makes it difficult to eradicate / vaccinate for) so a person could have more than one attack in a lifetime - immunity is built from each attack to that particular ‘strain’ only. It is assumed that, as further attacks take place, there is a greater chance that the haemorraghic form will prevail. Death from the straight-forward forms of dengue are rare but the H form is, sadly, devastating. Following this to its logical conclusion, it does explain why the deaths are most often in the elderly.
What amazes and amuses me is that this time last year, when the same level of dengue and chik were no doubt happening in these same regions, we probably didn’t even notice them! However, concern is real and genuine and we are well aware that another mixing bowl for our H5N1 friend is not needed - if these people are already weakened by other viruses and diseases when the flu season starts ..
Latest press release from indian health ministry i found dated today http://tinyurl.com/wyy5p
Also a bit of chicken ginea news at the same link.
Not much new in this story except that Nepal has formed a med team to investigate the 8 mystery deaths. I did find the following amusing:
The disease could be viral influenza or common cold, National Health Education, Information and Communication Center said in a release on Sunday.
I hope the common cold has not become THIS deadly.
Hardly ‘common’, this cold. Anyone heard anything new?
That Nepal report-It is the only panflu-related news that ever got the hair to stand up on my arms, but my gernman shepherd has many such false alarms like when she sees a piece of plastic fluttering in an empty field. Still it was my first visceral reaction on the panflu front.
just over the boarder in Pakistan
“After India and Nepal, dengue, a mosquito-borne disease of the tropics, has claimed 17 lives in neighboring country Pakistan’s city, Karachi in the last four months, as reported by the health officials on Saturday….Besides that hospitals in the city have admitted around 700 patients potentially suffering from the disease, and around 250 people have been tested positive for dengue, following which a situation of high alert has been declared in the city by the city’s health officials…”
news thread says they think the problem in Nepal is SARS??
Yes, someone, without any facts or test results in hand, mentioned SARS. We should wait until further news out of Nepal reaches us. I will contact a journalist friend of mine in Kathmandu. If I hear anything, I will post it here.
Thank You, Albert!
Dengue may come in by air
“Dengue has killed significant numbers of people and affected hundreds recently. Apart from the open boarder, Nepal has airline flights coming in every day from several cities in India. … The government doesn’t have a policy of testing for dengue and it will take about a year more to set up the lab even though it has started working with the WHO in this regard,” a source at the National Public Health Laboratory said. However, Dr. Thakur claimed a lab could be set up within a few weeks. “We will start phasewise meetings with WHO from Tuesday in this regard as it has assured us of providing kits for the testing of about 200 samples,” ….”
More on the story. Pubic Health Office shows negligence on dengue threat in Siraha
Kantipur Report
SUNSARI, Oct 15 - Despite directives from the headquarters to keep constant vigilance to the Public Health Offices in different district against the possible threat of the deadly Dengue entering Nepal from neighbouring India, Siraha Public Health Office has continued to remain negligent on this issue. The Dengue scare started after the disease was identified to have spread in a village in Darbhanga, India, around 50 km south of the city of Jagayanagar bordering Siraha. Despite the heightened chances of the dengue virus entering Siraha following the news, the District Health Office, Siraha has shown no interest in this matter.
Stating that 13 of the 106 VDCs of Siraha lie on the Indian border, doctors have warned that appearance of the disease in any one of these will spell disaster for as many as 33 VDCs including Siraha municipality itself.
“Because the open border sees daily traffic to and from Darbhanga and Jayanagar, the danger of the virus spreading here is all too imminent,” medical sources opined.
According to sources, the district health office, Siraha has done little more than send letters to the health posts about the fatal disease.
Similarly, locals are irked at the apparent lack of concern in this matter by the concerned authorities in the face of mosquito epidemic following recent rainfalls and the subsequent stagnation of water.
India is one of many Asia-Pacific countries that have been identified by the World Health Organization (WHO) as at risk from dengue and health officials say that aircraft flying from India to Nepal may bring in the dengue virus. Dengue has killed a significant number of people and affected hundreds recently.
Apart from the open boarder, Nepal has airline flights coming in every day from several cities in India. According to Dr. G. D. Thakur, Chief of Disease Control at the Department of Health Services, a single entry of Ades Agepti (a type of mosquito that causes dengue epidemics) can breed thousands of others and airplane flights from India to Nepal every day pose the highest risk at present.”
“At the moment we have no equipment to detect cases of the mosquito-spread disease save Spinal testing and K 39 testing,” chief of Public Health office, Siraha, Dr. Raj Kumar Chaudhary said.
Meanwhile, police at Mahottari launched a strategic mosquito control and awareness programme on Sunday.
According to sources, the two-phase programme will include city cleaning and information dissemination.
Posted on: 2006–10–15 04:55:31 (Server Time)
But I thought that Dengue could only be contracted by mosquitoes; not transmissible by humans. If this is correct, why would they be thinking its contagious by air?
Just another follow-up thought. Dengue Fever has been around in this region for a long time. Why wouldn’t they know by now if its easily transmissible.
Tink – at 09:39 & 09:40:
Per Wikipedia:
“This infectious disease is manifested by a sudden onset of fever, with severe headache, muscle and joint pains (myalgias and arthralgias — severe pain gives it the name break-bone fever or bonecrusher disease) and rashes; the dengue rash is characteristically bright red petechia and usually appears first on the lower limbs and the chest - in some patients, it spreads to cover most of the body. There may also be gastritis with some combination of associated abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting or diarrhea.
Some cases develop much milder symptoms, which can, when no rash is present, be misdiagnosed as a flu or other viral infection. Thus, travelers from tropical areas may inadvertently pass on dengue in their home countries, having not being properly diagnosed at the height of their illness. Patients with dengue can only pass on the infection through mosquitoes or blood products while they are still febrile.”
Thanks Dennis in CO. So, doesn’t this confirm that it’s not Dengue they are dealing with here?
I think what they may be concerned about is the possibility of mosquitos carrying Dengue getting a free ride from India to Nepal via aircraft. That’s what I thought the sentence below meant: “… a single entry of Ades Agepti (a type of mosquito that causes dengue epidemics) can breed thousands of others and airplane flights from India to Nepal every day pose the highest risk at present.”
This is really Nepal, but this seemed the closest thread for it.
Diarrhea kills 2 in Dhading, over 50 ill “At least two persons died while over 50 others have been affected in an outbreak of diarrhea in Jyamarung village, Dhading district within the past one week. … Meanwhile, a similar report from Myagdi to the west says that more 145 persons have become bed-ridden with diarrhea in Takam village which has been afflicted since the last one week. ..
Four persons have already died while over 100 others became sick. The outbreak affected almost everyone in the village after they ate the flesh of a sick buffalo.
The thing I notice is that Nepal doesn’t have a way to test for dengue. So when you see dengue reports from there it is just a “guess”.
Returning Nepali worker dies
Nepali youth working in the Indian Capital New Delhi who was on his way home to Govindapur….Ram Kisun Rajput died … a few hours after he crossed into Nepal…
He had undergone severe vomiting throughout his journey and had also been suffering from fever for the last five days. …he might have been suffering from dengue, a contagious disease that is quickly spreading in India. ….
It is not a normal fever,” …, . it might have been dengue.” But there is no facility of to test dengue in Nepal. The kin of Rajput have already taken away the his body.
If an airplane carries an Aedes aegypti to an ecosysytem where it cannot survive there will be no spread of the virus. No vectors = no parasites.
This is like the old wives saying about when a pregnancy is in doubt : Time will tell. There will always be skeptics (genuine ones and those planted by tptb to calm the sheeple from ‘panic’).
Another old saying comes to mind, if it walks and quacks like a duck.. Well, if if walks and talks like panflu… Got the picture? But for now, time will tell.
With regard to the “Dengue May Come by Air” post. A veterinarian friend of mine told me that where she is (New Jersey) they had taken in for adoption a number of dogs abandoned from the Katrina episode and now the area is a hot spot for heartworm. The dogs are not infectious but mosquitoes in the area will feed on the blood of the infected dogs and spread the infection this way. If there are some mosquitoes in Nepal which could be capable of transmitting Dengue should they bite an infected person, that would be the kind of thing the health authorities would be worried about in this case.
bump for visibility
Hey Guys,What do you think this sounds like? “NUWAKOT,AUG 18 - Unprecedented epidemic of an unidentified disease has killed at least 14 people, including seven children, in Netini VDC, a far eastern village of the district,in the past few weeks. The disease, which was first detected in DOGS AND CHICKENS in the last week of June, had started spreading to humans. Major symptoms of the disease are high fever together with BLEEDING FROM THE NOSE AND MOUTH AT THE TIME OF DEATH.”-----It might be worthwhile to start mapping these reports.In my mind, this report leaves little doubt that India needs to be monitered. Although in my mind , the chicken may have already flown the coop.www.kantipuronline.com (unidentified disease kills 14)
link to the above article
Here’s another news story from Sept. 21,2006. Another village, 5 people dead, 2 children. Same unidentified disease.
http://english.people.com.cn/200609/…21_304959.html
Five die of unidentified disease in western Nepal
Five people died of unidentified disease at remote Chamchet village of western Gorkha district during last two weeks, local Nepal Samacharpatra daily reported here on Thursday.
“Five people including two children died of unidentified disease in the area, some 150 km northwest of capital Kathmandu,” the Nepali language daily reported, quoting Gopal Lama, former village chief, as saying.
But, officials at the District Health Office said they were uninformed about the disease in the area.
Although there is a sub-health post at the village, only a female health volunteer has been working there for last two years, according to daily.
Source: Xinhua
Thankyou Kim, I need a computer pen pal. I have a rather serious illness that can really handicap me( mentally and physically)at times. I see many articles that I feel I should post,but since I still am not posting properly I shy away.Please bear with me. I did try to follow the directions someone kindly posted,but I quess I just need someone to show me.
Witness, it sounds like more of the “anything but bird flu” disease.
witness: Your past few posts have been some of the most concerning to date. You are doing a fantastic service for the wiki. Please don’t feel you need to shy away for any reason. Your information is vital to everyone here, no matter how you post it. GET WELL and THANKS FOR ALL YOU DO!!!!!!!!!
Anon mc-You don’t know how much that means to me. Thankyou so much.
witness: Ditto to anon mc’s comments!!!! There are a lot of us out here who consider your contributions to be a huge asset to the wiki! PLEASE FEEL BETTER SOON!!!!! :)
witness: I even copied your post over to the news thread! Hope that was OK. I showed it was reported by you. Everybody should know what you have found!
Thanks ,both of you.As my husband would say” Don’t encourage her”,but you did, so here goes. I hope someone can find the link.-----“Dengue cases on rise, toll increases”“Cases of dengue fever are on the rise not just in Delhi but in other states as well.In the past 24 hours, five more people have died across the country.----Unheard complaints---EVERY HOUSE IN THE AREA IS REPORTING CASES OF FEVER,BUT RESIDENTS SAY THEIR COMPLAINTS GO UNHEARD.ONE OF THE FAMILIES LOST THEIR 14-YEAR-OLD SON RAKESH JUST A FEW DAYS AGO.”HE HAD FEVER AND WAS BLEEDING FROM THE MOUTH.,”SAID A RELATIVE OF RAKESH.------Every home has someone sick! That doesn’t sound good.www.Ndtv.com
I have never done this before, so let’s hope there’s no sidescroll…
try here:
witness: I did it!!! See, you are even inspiring those around you to try new things! I copied the http:// stuff which showed what site I was on, then I came back here and clicked the “tinyurl service” in the blue box below. I pasted it into the spot on their site. They generated a tiny url and I copied that and pasted it into the post here. When you are feeling up to it, you should give it a try. The worst it will do is cause sidescroll and pogge will have to fix it. People would rather have sidescroll than not have news. I have made plenty of editing errors, not to mention spelling errors here which are embarassing, but hey, I figure you guys can’t see me so I can live with it. Then maybe you’ll get cocky enough to learn how to post in different sizes. I would have done different colors, but I forgot how… maybe I’ll try that tomorrow. :)
Here is India’s recent action for bird flu http://tinyurl.com/y5mal5 And the news gets worse with Dengue causing a 10% kill rate as of today, the biggest jump I have seen, its either a misdiagnosis or Dengue has mutated which seems unlikely. http://tinyurl.com/y8z5xx Same story with link from AP http://tinyurl.com/yyg284
What I find amazing is that they are currently able to confirm a very small percentage of cases as actual dengue. So, in other words, there is a rapidly spreading disease in India that causes flu like symptons, death, and spreads to every household with at least one person in the house ill according to the reports. I’ll stand by my one week left and counting to ferret out the truth of the matter, but it certainly is not looking good at this time. http://tinyurl.com/y8z5xx
Hospitals crumble under dengue pressure cnn-ibn posted monday 10/16/06
New Delhi-Dengue may not be an epidemic yet, but our public healthcare systems is already crumbling under it’s pressure with All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), and other hospitals already running short of blood and beds. Since the deadly viral broke, hospitals across the national capital region have been strugling to deal with the onslaught. What makes the situation worse, is that most of them don’t have blood separators, which means all blood samples are sent to National Institute of Communicable Diseases for tests. There is often a delay in delivery of reports which delays treatment as well.
To add to it, there is a perpetual blood shortage too.
Offically, dengue has not been declared an epidemic yet, but that could be because the numbers are often under quoted. An average government hospital gets 100–200 dengue suspects everyday. even a mild fever has been enough for people to come rushing.
Witness, I remembered reading something very similar to the “mystery” deaths last year in Nepal’s. I just spent the last 2 hours searching for it. It sounds very similar to the deaths this year. I do not know if they are in the same region as this years or not. I never did find the article I was looking for because it talked about it being a remote village. I searched for days last year trying to find info and that one article was all I ever found. Please remember these articles are dated 2005!
http://tinyurl.com/ykll5s Mysterious disease tolls 9 in eastern Nepal
www.chinaview.cn 2005–08–28 01:45:29
KATHMANDU, Aug. 28 (Xinhuanet) — Mysterious disease tolls reached nine after two more people died on Saturday of the disease that broke out in a eastern district in Nepal, a local government officer confirmed here Sunday.
“The two of them died within hours after being infected by the disease on Saturday night in Beltar area of Udayapur district, some 300 km east of Kathmandu,” Jeevan Prasad Oli, chief district officer, told reporters.
The outbreak of the unknown disease already claimed the lives of seven patients in Beltar, Sudarpur and Siddipur villages of the district in the past few weeks.
The symptoms included high fever, headache as well as bleeding from the nose and vomiting blood, Oli noted, adding, “Patients infected with the disease have been taken to a hospital in Dharan city for treatment.”
Promeds take on above: (I removed links from articles see their website for complete listing)
http://tinyurl.com/y33ly3
At least 5 people have succumbed to a mysterious disease in eastern Nepal, a government officer confirmed here Tuesday [23 Aug 2005].
“The unknown disease has claimed the lives of 3 patients in Beltar village and 2 in Siddipur village, Udyapur district, some 300 km east of Kathmandu,” Jeevan Prasad Oli, chief district officer, told reporters.
The symptoms included high fever, headache as well as bleeding from the nose and vomiting blood, Oli noted, adding: “Patients infected with the disease have been taken to a hospital in Dharan city for treatment.”
A 3-member medical team has already been sent to the disease-affected area, Oli said. ProMED-mail would appreciate more information on the above case clusters.
Checking the symptom complex with Gideon (Global Infectious Disease and Epidemiology Network ProMED-mail would appreciate more information on the above case clusters.
Checking the symptom complex with Gideon (Global Infectious Disease and Epidemiology Network <, the most likely disease, given the symptoms presented above, would be one of the old world hantaviruses. Searching the available literature, there is an article in the Japanese literature which identified an overall seropositivity rate of 8.7 percent of 322 specimens from patients attending outpatient clinics at the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital in Kathmandu. Of note, a higher positivity rate of 12 percent was seen in those living outside of the Kathmandu valley (5.1 percent), suggesting hantavirus infection was more prevalent in rural areas. Given the above information, hantavirus infection should remain in the differential diagnosis, at least until more information on these cases is available. -, the most likely disease, given the symptoms presented above, would be one of the old world hantaviruses. Searching the available literature, there is an article in the Japanese literature (abstract in English) <http://www.jarmam.gr.jp/jarmam/8-2/e/2.html> which identified an overall seropositivity rate of 8.7 percent of 322 specimens from patients attending outpatient clinics at the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital in Kathmandu. Of note, a higher positivity rate of 12 percent was seen in those living outside of the Kathmandu valley (5.1 percent), suggesting hantavirus infection was more prevalent in rural areas. Given the above information, hantavirus infection should remain in the differential diagnosis, at least until more information on these cases is available. -
side note: I now have a new respect for those working on our news stories after searching, copying, pasting, tiny urling. re-reading, deleting, and ETC, ETC, ETC. I give you a standing ovation from me. Hats Off to you… Great Job!!!
Wow, that was really long, next time I get wild and decide to post I will just post links only… Sorry
Chikungunya in India WHO
17 October 2006
From February 2006 to 10 October 2006, the WHO Regional Office for South-East Asia has reported 151 districts in 8 states/provinces of India affected by chikungunya fever (see below). The affected states are Andhra Pradesh, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala and Delhi. More than 1.25 million suspected cases have been reported from the country, which 752,245 were from Karnataka and 258,998 from Maharashtra provinces. In some areas reported attack rates have reached 45%.
A team from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, health officials from Kerala and staff from the WHO India Office and Regional Office for South-East Asia investigated the outbreak in Kerala. They carried out clinical and epidemiological examinations of suspected cases in hospitals and at home, and collected clinical samples. An entomological survey revealed high densities of Aedes albopictus in the affected areas as well as in areas not affected by the disease….
Notice the first 6 letters in Chikungunya. Coincidence? I think not!
On the fence…LOL
chikungunagetya
huh? c h i k u n Ohhhhhhhhh! LOL!
We have had several weeks of various diseases in India attributed to Chikungunya, dengue, etc. but has there been any testing for H5N1 yet? The high CFR (if correct) suggests either something other than these “regular” diseases or unusually virulent forms. In Nepal, the remoteness and lack of human resources make testing difficult, but in New Delhi? Is it just that nobody there thinks these are unusual occurances? Or are they testing and not reporting?
in the article I posted earlier here, 09:09, they stated their lack of blood supply. Makes me wonder if it isn’t haemorrhagic dengue fever. I read an article that said the platlet count had to fall to like 50,000 before they would give blood. something like that.
As mentioned earlier in this and other threads, the symptoms of dengue vary wildly. Most people affected do not report to hospitals, only the worst cases do, if they can. Calculating the CFR from the cases in hospitals therefore certainly gives too high a figure. Most of the time, when we have patients with high fever and really feeling lousy, we never find out if it was dengue or not. It is true that no or almost no testing for H5N1 is done in India or Nepal or anywhere else in Sounth Asia. In my opinion, the reasons for that are that they do not suspect anything sinister is going on except for the dengue, chikunkunya and normal influenze viruses, the cost associated with the tests, and the absence of specialised labs in most places. The Authorities do not suspect an H5N1 pandemic breaking out in this region at this time.
albert at 12:38
if they are not testing for H5N1, how can the Authorities suspect that an H5N1 pandemic is not breaking out in that region? Perhaps not a pandemic, but the start of confirmation of yes it’s here or no it’s not here. It just sounds to me, that they are really overtaxed, and overwhelmed, they just don’t know what to do, let alone think.
Albert at 12:38: Thank you for an informed and balanced answer. But couldn’t the WHO donate some PCR kits? Even a sampling of suspicious cases would either show their suppositions to be correct or raise a warning flag that something else is going on. With H5N1 being such a potential threat, surely the cost of a few thusand dollars is worth it? Or doI have my medical facts wrong? Is there a spare NAMRU available to help out?
Albert at 12:38: Thank you for an informed and balanced answer. But couldn’t the WHO donate some PCR kits? Even a sampling of suspicious cases would either show their (the Indian medical authority’s) benign suppositions to be correct or raise a warning flag that something else is going on. With H5N1 being such a potential threat, surely the cost of a few thusand dollars is worth it? Or doI have my medical facts wrong? Is there a spare NAMRU available to help out?
albert- Why don’t they ask WHO to come in and help them? Lord knows they need all the help they can get!
New Delhi,Oct18 ----“ Sharda Devi shivers, despite being covered by a thick blanket as her daughter Malti gives her a cold compress. Unable to find a bed in the hospital due to an influx of dengue patients,SHARDA HAS SPENT TWO DAYS ON THE PAVEMENT OUTSIDE THE EMERGENCY WARD OF THE ALL INDIA INSTITUTE OF MEDCICAL SCIENCES HERE.”-“MANY DENGUE PATIENTS, LIKE SHARDA DEVI, COVERED COMPLETELY IN THICK BLANKETS, SHARE SPACE ON THE SIDEWALKS DUE TO THE LACK OF BEDS IN THE OVERCROWDED DENGUE WARD.”----I think this scene speaks for itself. This coupled with “EVERY HOME REPORTING FEVER”. Whatever disease this is,it is alarming.How big is New Delhi anyway? That is a lot of people sick.www.in.news.yahoo.com (under:The misery of dengue omnipresent at AIIMS)
Albert, with all due respect, under that model India, Nepal, et al will never have h5n1. ‘You can’t find what you dont look for’. We would like to believe that this is not h5n1, but if they are not testing for it then that shadow of a doubt remains.
Given what’s happening in New Delhi right now, this might make the hair on the back of your neck stand up.”DELHI LINK TO BENGAL ‘MYSTERY’ FEVER 800 SICK IN BADURIA” bARASAT OCT. 8 “A goldsmith who came home from Delhi around mid-August could have carried mystery fever to Baduria. Health department sources said the first case of fever,was dectected on Aug 18. The second case of high fever with similar symptoms was reported on Sept 1, a health official said. AROUND 800 PEOPLE IN 20 VILLAGES NOW HAVE FEVER,STILL IN THE REALM OF “MYSTERY”.THIRY-NINE PEOPLE IN 20 VILLAGES WHO HAVE HIGH FEVER AND SEVERE JOINT PAIN HAVE REPORTED SICK OVER THE PAST 24 HOURS.-------MANY BADURIA RESIDENTS ARE PLANNING TO SHIFT THEIR CHILDREN TO RELATIVE’S PLACES ELSEWHERE.”AS MORE AND MORE PEOPLE ARE FALLING ILL, I WOULD MOVE MY CHILDREN TO A RELATIVE’S HOUSE NEAR CALCUTTA. I HAVE TO STAY HERE TO EARN A LIVING.” SAID SANJIB DAS.
And I bet you’d like a link. www.telegraphindia.com
According to the article below, health officials report that the number of people sick with Dengue is not unusual for this time of year (Oct. - Feb.) After reading this article, does it alter anyone’s suspicions that they are really dealing with H5N1?
that’s just what they need. taking “possibly infected children to relatives houses, to possible infected them. that’s how it spreads, if this is a contagious disease, and not dengue.
Albert, what authorities? Where did you get that information? Can you post a link to what they are saying and WHY they “do not suspect an H5N1 pandemic breaking out in this region at this time”.
Given the one of the main symptoms they are dealing with in my last post, I found this interesting. Quote from John Barry’s book.Page 234 “Patients would writhe from agonizing pain in their joints. Doctors would diagnose dengue, also known as breakbone fever.Patients would suffer extreme fever and chills, shuddering , shivering, then huddling under blankets”. ---- This last sentence sounds like the patients on the sidewalk outside the hospital. ---- And last, but not least, my neighbor told me about a week ago that his aunt and uncle sent their children to relatives also during the outbreak of 1918. The circumstances seem so similar and their reaction seems so similar. We can learn so much from history.
in 1996, when the first major outbreak of dengue occured, 423 deaths and 10,252 cases where reported from Delhi and neighboring states. In another outbreak in 2003, 215 lost their lives, and 12,754 people were infected. -zeenews.com
these people know what dengue is. why are headlines being reported, that they don’t know what is hitting them, it could be this, not sure what that is, ect. Tink at 14:57, link really sounds to cut and dry from what we’ve been reading.
Albert – at 12:38 I want to believe that you are correct. However If I tell you that I have a bird, with a long beak, web feet and migrates every year you will tell me I have a duck.
That is what appears to be happening in India. They know it is Dengue season and so they are looking for dengue. No different then my going to my doctor here during Flu season, will all the symptoms of the Flu and him treating me for the Flu when I really have west Nile virus.
You do not know what you have until you are able to look it in the eye (microscope).
I just want to be sure that it is dengue and that they are giving the people infected the right treatment.
By the way my bird is a pelican.
cottontop -
“these people know what dengue is.”
Excellent point.
Thanks everyone for your continued efforts on Indonesia and India. There is no doubt that the ground is shifting as we speak and I personally feel less comfortable now then I did even a month ago…and that’s saying a lot because I wasn’t very comfortable a month ago either.
You guys/gals are chasing this like a hound chases a rabbit…I have no doubt when it happens I will be one of the fortunate few who will know it before many in the country where it is happening.
Chasing these diffuse stories is, in my opinion, the most important job on flu wiki at the moment because it is starting to look like the corner of India-China-Nepal may be ‘ground zero’.
Thanks again for all your efforts on our behalf!!
okbirdwatcher- how many cases have they diagnosed between 1996 and now of dengue? and suddenly they “don’t know what their looking at? “It might be, might not?” This just keeps getting weirder. Too many pieces missing, to form the big picture.
Tom DVM - don’t forget Pakastan…..
For all of you following the dengue, the hospitals in Kalamantan, Indonesia (island of Borneo, shared with Malaysia), have also been overwhelmed recently with dengue patients. It’s a dengue squeeze-play.
Thousands of West Kalimantan citizens were attacked by Dengue Fever
16/10/2006 07:16 / Liputtan6 / http://tinyurl.com/y3vb4e
The plague of dengue fever raged in Pontianak and the other area in West Kalimantan as far as Ahad (15/10).
Not not all that 1,200 casualties that most children were treated since the last two months. Moreover 15 of the patients died.
One of the hospitals that treated the dengue fever patient in Pontianak was RS Saint Antonius. The number of numbers of the patient’s casualties made the hospital biggest in this city was overwhelmed. <snip>
From an earlier Witness post, a calm description of dengue fever and hemorraghic dengue. (from NDTV, in India, I guess)
Goju. Thanks. I am watching China and North Korea.
Now what we really need is a way to watch Africa.
sharp rise in Degue cases New Delhi-oct. 18,06 (yesterday for them)
Dengue cases across the country registered a sharp rise with reports of 713 more patients afflicted with the disease even as seven persons succombed to the viral fever talking the death toll to 116. While 6,423 persons were afflicted with dengue county wide, Delhi with 1,731 patients, maharashta witnessed a spurt in the number of fresh cases which more tha doubles overnight from 240, (yesterday), to 580 today (oct.19.) according to the national vector borne disease control programme. 22 people have died due to dengue in maharashta. Kerala reported 794 cases, while rajastan, 781 people have been afflicted with the disease and 11 deaths have been reported.
-zeenews.com
I wonder how many of these people have actually been tested and confirmed as dengue?
“KMC openly hides dengue” Koklata,Oct. 17: The Left Front Board of Kolkata Muncipal Corp.,which was till date only charged with suppressing facts and misleading citzens, today openly declared that henceforth facts and figures related to the dengue outbreak will not go out of the four walls of the small red fort.Dr. Subodh Dey said:”WE WILL NOT DISCLOSE ANY STATISTICS REGARDING DENGUE AS IT ONLY CREATES AMBIGUITY AMONG THE CITIZENS”.-------MEANWHILE,AT LEAST 350 PEOPLE IN BADURIA WERE REPORTED TO HAVE TAKEN ILL BY AN “UNKNOWN FEVER”SINCE SATURDAY.www.the statesman.net
witness- that is certainly interesting! why use the word “ambiguity”? How would it create “ambiguity among the citizens”? all those people want is the truth.And so do we. They either have an honest outbreak of dengue, or they don’t. To my mind, that statement says alot.
Link to witness @23:09
Anon 451. Too many balls in the air!!! What do you think?
Tom DVM – at 23:31 Yeah In my Very HUMBLE opinion, It is looking like early spring 1918. Think you may be right about first of year for virulent strain (possible second wave).
Hope not…not ready for it!!…actually, I will never be ready for it…we have to be wrong…oh well!!!!
it’s just normal pnuemonia. Now where have I heard that before?
LMWatBullRun – at 00:14 John Barry’s book discussing the Spring out break and how the Doctors looked at it at the time.
Anon 451 “Albert – at 12:38 I want to believe that you are correct. However If I tell you that I have a bird, with a long beak, web feet and migrates every year you will tell me I have a duck.
That is what appears to be happening in India. They know it is Dengue season and so they are looking for dengue. No different then my going to my doctor here during Flu season, will all the symptoms of the Flu and him treating me for the Flu when I really have west Nile virus.
You do not know what you have until you are able to look it in the eye (microscope).
I just want to be sure that it is dengue and that they are giving the people infected the right treatment.
By the way my bird is a pelican. “
LOL ! Sorry but I am a biologist and an amateur bird watcher… You did not fool me with the bird analogy ! Good try though!
You can’t see viruses through a microscope. You need sophisticated instruments, trained personnel, reagents, a suitable lab environment, and a good reason to do it. Now go to rural India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, and look for yourself. All or most of the above are missing.
I don’t see any “official” worry here that the present number of patients, symptoms, morbidity or mortality would be caused by H5N1. That’s not my opinion, that’s what I observe here, and last week in India. Personally, I am prepped to some extent but not “very” worried right now. My wife and kids have gone to our country farm house on the border between Bangladesh and India for a week’s holiday for midterm break and my main concerns are road accidents and dengue, in that order. My 6 and 7-year old kids have witnessed the birth of a calf yesterday and it is only a matter of time before they will ask me how it got in there. That is another worry :)
Albert – at 00:50 Your family sounds wonderful and I know you enjoy them. My youngest is 30 and I am having to answer the same questions for my grand children.
Please do not think ill of me but I have learned to never trust any government where money is involved and having H5N1 in India would cost your country a lot of money.
I have seen Dengue up close and it is not pretty so my heart goes out to anyone who has to endure it.
My call for the WHO to come in and help is a direct result of the problem of equipment and supplies. You have the doctors as many immigrate to the US and are very good at what they do.
More from Nepal---Kathmandu,Oct 9- A child died of pneumonia in Saptari monday while undergoing treatment a the Koshi hospital. This marks the fourth death of an infant from the pneumonia scare that has gripped eastern Nepal.Previously, three infants brought to the same hospital for treatment had died within a span of seven days from pneumonia. Around 80 children are undergoing treatment at the hospital for pneumonia and dysentery.DESPITE DOCTOR’S ASSURANCE THAT A RISE IN SUCH AILMENTS IS COMMON DURING PERIODS OF SEASONAL CHANGE,AN INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF PATIENTS AT ALL THE LOCAL HOSPITALS AND CLINCS SAY OTHERWISE..THE SITUATION HAS ESCALATED TO A POINT WHERE TWO PATIENTS SHARE A SINGLE BED.www.duryognivaran.org
More from Nepal---Kathmandu,Oct 9- A child died of pneumonia in Saptari monday while undergoing treatment a the Koshi hospital. This marks the fourth death of an infant from the pneumonia scare that has gripped eastern Nepal.Previously, three infants brought to the same hospital for treatment had died within a span of seven days from pneumonia. Around 80 children are undergoing treatment at the hospital for pneumonia and dysentery.DESPITE DOCTOR’S ASSURANCE THAT A RISE IN SUCH AILMENTS IS COMMON DURING PERIODS OF SEASONAL CHANGE,AN INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF PATIENTS AT ALL THE LOCAL HOSPITALS AND CLINCS SAY OTHERWISE..THE SITUATION HAS ESCALATED TO A POINT WHERE TWO PATIENTS SHARE A SINGLE BED.www.duryognivaran.org
It seems Asia is not the only place being hit by dengue, Central and South America now too.
Where next?
Albert at 00:50.
Thank you for your rational and well articulated posts.
There are many here who are so sure an H5N1 pandemic is just around the corner that they are desperate for proof of their worst fears.
You are correct, there is no reason at all to believe at this point that India is looking at anything other than a seasonal outbreak of dengue.
People need to remain vigilant, but they also need to exhale once and a while. Stare at something long enough and you start seeing things that aren’t there.
My message - everybody relax. India has a lot more expertise in diagnosing/handling dengue than fluwikians have in trying to read H5N1 into every disease outbreak that happens around the world.
Just because symptoms are similar doesn’t mean tests need to be run to prove it is not H5N1. India doesn’t owe the anxious members of this forum anything. I would also suggest that it is somewhat insulting to suggest that you know better what is going on in India and what India needs than the people of India themselves.
Again, relaxc and exhale. : )
Reader- I saw the reports coming in from South America also.Remember when Mike Leavitt was called away from the Kansas summit to the White House?The very next day he flew to Panama. I have been watching the region ever since.
witness – at 02:35 Remember when Mike Leavitt was called away from the Kansas summit to the White House?The very next day he flew to Panama.
Could you or anyone else elaborate a little about that?
Newsie: I agree that panic is always a bad reaction. But H5N1 is an unusual virus and past experience may not prepare us to deal with it. Testing a sample of panflu-like cases with WHO funds does not strike me as an excessive or unwise step at this point. Tom DVM’s point that the virus is drifting and may not test positive on existing PCR devices is a fair one, but then we would have some false negatives. It would be bad for panflu planners but not for panic. If this virus is like or worse than the 1918 one, there would be few in India that could deal with it based on experience - and flu of that type and dengue are easily mixed up.
Dengue fever kills 8 more in Pakistani city (Reuters)
19 October 2006
KARACHI - “Mosquito-born dengue fever has killed eight more people in Pakistan’s southern city of Karachi, raising the death toll to 20 over the past four months, officials said on Thursday.
[snip]
“We have had eight deaths since the beginning of October. People are worried with this outbreak but we are keeping things under control,” Abdul Majid, a senior official in the health ministry of the southern province of Sindh, told Reuters”
[snip]
Majid said there had been around 1,000 suspected cases in Karachi and some 290 of them tested positive for dengue fever. He said special emergency units had been set up in the hospitals to deal with the disease. “
JWB – at 07:12
I found this, not sure if this is what witness – at 02:35 was referring to, though. :)
October 6, 2006 — The Honorable Michael O. Leavitt, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), met on September 25–26, 2006, with Ministers of Health from Central America to discuss collaboration between HHS and their Ministries to set the stage for health diplomacy directed at improving the health of their people and the health infrastructure of their countries. The Ministers of Health were in Washington, D.C., to attend the 47th Directing Council of the Pan American Health Organization.
JWB – at 07:12
I’m sorry JWB…the meeting above was in D.C., so it’s definitely not it.
The most recent visit I could find is June 8, 2006, here is an article and link:
“U.S. Health Secretary Urges Central America To Plan for Pandemic Leavitt, in Panama, outlines hemispheric partnership in disease prevention
“It is estimated that, in all of Latin America, about 766,000 people died during the Great Pandemic of 1918,” said Leavitt. “It was especially virulent in rural areas of Central and South America, and it touched many nations deeply.”
[snip]
“United States health experts are working with their counterparts in Panama to enhance: surveillance capacity, laboratory testing, diagnosis, treatment and epidemiological investigations,” Leavitt said.”“
…My son woke up at 4:00 a.m with a cough and fever , he is back in bed, but I’m awake now… :-)
‘’‘Four new deaths by fever in Dominican
Holy Sunday, 19 oct (PL) Excerpt, translated from Spanish’‘’ :
“Four new deaths by fever reported today in Dominican the National Direction of Epidemiology, with which they enlarge 44 the victims of the illness and the number of cases is of four thousand 968.
Of that total attended in the hospitals, four thousand 794 cases are of classic fever and 174 of the type hemorragic, said the authorities of health.
The behavior of the epidemic, they aim the experts, declares a tendency downward, reckoned in official media in more 70 percent al to consider the decrease of the flow of patients to the bodies of guard of the hospitals.
It they passed week the cases confirmed were 336, smaller figure with respect to the previous when they passed from thousand them diagnosed each seven days.
Nevertheless, the authorities of health declared that they will maintain the warning and epidemiological caution until next the end of November, and will continue actions to eliminate nurseries of the mosquito Aedes Aegypti, transmitter of the illness. “
‘’‘Dengue can be diagnosed on first day
Thursday October 19 2006 11:41 IST’‘’
BANGALORE: Bio-Rad Laboratories, a multinational manufacturer and distributor of life science research products and clinical diagnostic have launched a new test kit for dengue screening called the PLATELIAO DENGUE NS1 Ag Assay in the country.
This test is based on the specific detection of dengue virus NS1 antigen.
‘’‘According to the Country Manager of Bio-Rad India Dhiren Wagle, the existing dengue tests identify the virus indirectly by detecting antibodies, which are produced only four to six days after the appearance of the first symptoms.
The new test is able to detect the virus from the first day of symptoms.’‘’
By enabling diagnosis several days earlier, this new test allows an early diagnosis of primary and secondary dengue acute infections.
Wagle said, “Early detection of dengue is critical as it means that we can provide the appropriate treatment as soon as possible. This test kit is available in Bangalore and other metros too,” he added.
Wagle stressed that the routine tests used to screen the dengue viral infection are based on the detection of specific dengue virus antibodies.
However, these particular antibodies are only produced several days after the first clinical signs appear four to six days for a primary infection.
The new test enables detection of NS1 dengue virus antigen as soon as the first clinical signs appear, added Wagle.”
Thanks Niah.
Yes,Thanks Niah. What would I do without you dedicated people to back up the things I say? Half the time they sound crazy. And Infomass, your suggestion about the WHO is obviously a rational and balanced one.No naion is an island. What they do or don’t do can affect us all someday.
JWB – at 08:37 :
witness – at 12:31 :
your welcome! :-)
Niah – at 08:03
The new test is interesting information, so please excuse my skeptical mindset. That story sounds more like a press release than it does a news article. The only source of information was a set of quotations from the manager of Bio-Rad Labs. Also, according to the website, “The objects of [Newindpress.com]include, among other things, carrying on the business of network and software.”
Dennis in Colorado – at 13:43
Hi Dennis in Colorado…I was up at four in the morning this morning because my son wasn’t feeling good, then got him back to bed and I couldn’t sleep. Started browsing news stories on the net, and I must admit my brain might not have been 100% functional. :-) It never occurred to me that it might be a press release, which it may well be.
I just couldn’t believe it, I thought to myself “this new test should clear up all the ambiguity regarding the suspected Dengue cases in India…Either they are, or they aren’t Dengue.” Unfortunately, if this is in fact a press release, I think your right to have some healthy skepticism. Niah
More India News
‘’‘Twelve die of encephalitis, malaria, 4 from dengue in WB “Siliguri, Oct 19′’‘ : Twelve persons have died of encephalitis and malaria in government hospitals in West Bengal’s Malda district in the past one week, while another four have died of dengue and another 500 affected in the rest of the state.
Malda district magistrate Chittaranjan Das told PTI that of the 12, eight were children and four women.
He said he did not have the figures of those affected as it could not be supplied by the health department.
[snip]
Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee said that the situation was under control. “
Niah – at 13:58
Even if it is a press release, I hope that their product can help in the diagnostic area. We need all the help we can get at this point. I guess we just need to find out if it is being used by anyone.
“Unreported cases of dengue increasing enormously in rural India”-- “The epidemic is serious and the government is doing little about it.Unofficially, THE RURAL SECTOR IS SEEING HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF CASES AND VERY FEW ARE GETTING ADEQUATE MEDICAL ATTENTION.”www.indiadaily.com
More direct link to above:
MY DISCLAIMER; I AM NOT SAYING THIS IS H5N1. I FOUND IT OF INTEREST AND I THOUGHT OTHERS MIGHT ALSO. “Cuba raging war against dengue fever”--- “ There is a pile of dead people nobody talks about,said Arturo , a restaurant worker recuited by the Communist Party to fumigate Havana homes.”A lot of people have gotten sick. A lot.”Another technician working on the spraying campaign said wards were set up for infected people at Salvador Allende Hospital in Havana.----“We don’t have an epidemic, we don’t have anything.”said an official at Havana’s international midical center,a hospital aimed at tourists.------Seeing how these different countries downplay ‘any’ disease how are we to ever know?This was in the Miami Herald.
What speaks against these cases being influenza is that the spread appears to be too localised, if it was as infectious as influenza it would have surely spread into countries whos surveilance is more thorough. In regards to India you must understand that in a country so densely populated panic has a very ugly side with many direct casualties. Perhaps it is just for the first time we are looking at the real toll that disease brings in other parts of the world. Just consider the death toll from tubercelosis in Kathmandu it is enourmous. Do not read too much into what you are seeing and consider not only the cost of your preps but what level of financial aid can we offer to bring these terrible situations under control. This is another step in our consensual world awareness that is brought to us at last by a perceived threat to our own well being.
This mosquito has been noted in New Jersey, which means it is in our southern states as well. If it is manifesting itself (Dengue) in Havana, we can expect it by next summer the earliest, or in 08, 09. We have had West Nile for years.From the articles in the Star Ledger that I noted a few weeks ago it appears they are expecting trouble in the future.
The mosquito that carries Dengue was first found in Texas in a load of tires. I think in the 90′s. So far I haven’t heard of Dengue in the U.S..
the vector is a moscito, but its a mans virus.. the idea is not to prevent mosqitos to go by airplanes but infected people. That doesent mean its a H-H, its a H-Mosqito-H spread… That why its a vector. Other infections may have other vectors like sewage, needles etc.
“A vector in biology has several meanings: -An organism (biotic vector, pollinator) or medium (abioti vector, e.g. wind) wich transports pollen to a stigma. -An organism that transmits disease by conveying pathogens from one host to another (vector insect) -A virus used to deliver genetic material into a cell -A piece of DNA meant to carry DNA fragments into a host cell”. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vector
“Traditionally in medicine, a vector is an organism that does not cause disease itself but which spreads infection by conveying pathogens from one host to another. Species of mosquito, for example, serve as vectors for the deadly disease Malaria. This sense of “biological vector” is the primary one in epidemiology and in common speech.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vector_%28biology%29
If this is an extraordinary event we are witnessing, its a result of global warming.. The nature is on its move. We see more and more examples of it. Ticks in scandinavia, Tiger moscitoes from asia invading s europe.. It will be a stressfull future for all of us.. My idea is to help it, moving trees from south to north, The changes are so quick that nature it self cant polinate quick enough, with massive forrest deaths as a possible result.. The oak is comming back :D
diana – at 19:00 The asian tiger mosquito was officially confirmed in Houston TX in 1985. I remember at the time I was quite surprised at that news because I’d been bitten by the bugger in the late 70′s in the Carolina’s and Florida while in a tactical unit in the army. I’ve always been interested in, well, stuff, and noted the daytime biting and ability to pierce through serious clothing. Also the fact that it is rather pretty (the stripes are quite striking). Being from the north, I thought it was yet another in a long series of southern bugs to make my acquaintance. But that critter was here some years before somebody ID’d it in Houston.
Thank the lord for our little and big brown bats that flit around. Was watching them tonight as I drove down the Avenue of Sugar Maples. Warm nite.Well, if they’ve been around since the 70′s and 80′s I guess I won’t worry myself overmuch.But if they are in Cuba, and the Dominican Republic and Panama and it is racking up deaths, it is something for tourists to consider. I’ve known numerous people who went to Havana, Panama etc.
diana – at 19:28. And dragonflies, who patrol the world eating mosquitoes during the daytime while the bats are sleeping. Nice system they’ve got going. Dragonflies by day, bats by night.
RE: Skeeters - What I found most interesting (and did not know) was that certain infections are passed on to offspring. I’d always thought that, well, they were what they ate and it ended there. The fact that the broods developing in tires and puddles carry disease organisms which mama harbored casts a whole new light on things.
I wasn’t sure at first I was reading this number right.”13,26,000 CHIKUNGUNYA CASES ,THE COUNT IS STILL ON. TILL NOW,THERE ARE 13,26,OOO CASES OF CHIKUNGUNYA HAS BEEN REGISTERED ACROSS THE COUNTRY.”
LINK IS www.indiadaily.org
Hey, those of you who’ve been tracking this for a year or more, did you see this much disease in these areas last year? Is this normal? Thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands I recently read somewhere - don’t remember which country or which disease, I can’t keep it all straight in my head anymore.
That’s Just Ducky -Certainly not chikungunga. I believe I read that there had not been an outbreak in 34 years.
I don’t have a link anymore, but I recently read an article that it is not unusual for India to see even 10,000 cases of Dengue in a year, with a CFR hovering around .5 −1%. What we’re seeing right now seems to have exploded quite suddenly, but then the rains have started too, as I understand it.
What seems a little odd to me is that in some areas the CFR that they are reporting is closer to 4–5%, but maybe the reporting is skewed by only the serious cases getting attention. Hard to say.
This Chikungunya is a whole ‘nother “animal”. I’ve tried to do some research on it, but have been at a loss to pinpoint any information that says this virus has infected anywhere near the amount of people that it has infected these last few months. It appears to be unprecedented. Thankfully, it also appears to be a virus that is not nearly as lethal as H5N1. …….Niah
Witness: “I wasn’t sure at first I was reading this number right.”13,26,000 CHIKUNGUNYA CASES ,THE COUNT IS STILL ON. “
I can explain that :) In the Indian subcontinent, they don’t count in millions but in lacs and crores. A lac is one hundred thousand and a crore is ten million. The figure you quoted, 13,26,000 stands for thirteen lac twenty six thousand. Or one million three hundred twenty six thousand. When I first arrived here, I saw figures like that in the newspapers and thought they put the comma in the wrong place.
Thanks Albert, for clearing that up.I’ll sleep easier tonight.
Witness, when you use all caps, it is the internet equivalent of shouting. (I find it easiest to read posts when folks are kind enough to use lots of paragraph breaks)
Despite the high numbers of cases, it doesn’t sound like a really high death rate (no gruesome stories about bodies stacking in the streets) — as to the poor sick lady shivering under her blankets on the sidewalk out side the hospital, I’m sorry to say that happens on a daily basis in the big Indian cities — thousands live “on the streets”
I liked Tom DVM’s comment about posters following the news like a hound after a rabbit — sometimes hounds are so ready to run they’ll follow the same scent around in circles long after the rabbit has left the county. I’m still nervous about the Nepal illnesses — but the dengue in India still sounds like dengue to me. (all these cases and no stories about dead chickens — very different than Indonesia). I guess I also have faith in Indian yellow journalism. If there was any chance that the dramatic “bird flu” was sweeping the country, I think the Indian papers would be trumpeting the news just to sell papers.
Olymon- I am brand new to the computer and typing etc. Believe it or not I don’t even know how to make a paragraph break.I will try and post less often since I don’t seem to be doing it right.
Niah at 00:33-Chkungunya evolved last year into a more virulent virus (confirmed by scientists). And this new evolved virus first did its damage in the Seychelles and now it has spread to India. Viral evolution-a shark that never sleeps.
I think the use of caps should be gaged by the content of the post. I did not in anyway think witness was shouting, just drawing out attention to what they felt was important. I use caps to highlight a specific part of imformation. also, under normal posting, I do not use caps when upset by comments, but will use caps to convery humor. The wording around caps will tell you what is intended.
Witness: just use the “enter” key to go to the next line. Use it twice in a row to create a paragraph break. ;)
witness, keep posting OR I WILL HAVE TO START YELLING SO YOU WILL HEAR ME ;)
Medical Maven – at 08:31 Thank you for the info. Viral evolution…yuck. :-) niah
witness – at 02:12 Witness, please don’t stop posting, your work is much appreciated! :-) niah
OK, Now I am going to shout!This is on the news site.”ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS WITH BIRD FLU SYMPTOMS(FROM INDIA!)IN GREECE.
Thankyou TreasureIslandGal,Okiedokie,Niah and cottontop.You are all so very kind.(Look at me make a new line)
The problem with breakbone fever is that you literally won’t move, as the slightest motion feels like you are breaking your bones. The virus has gotten stronger with harsher effects. The two sisters I read about nearly starved, though they had food in their frig. They couldn’t bear to move.Chikungunga is called Breakbone fever. If you are alone, with noone to tend to you it could be very dire. No one would move a muscle voluntarily with this new more aggressive and virulent strain.With or without Avian flu we are in for a thinning out of the herd.)
Witness,
Where did you see this news? By the way, welcome to Flu Wikie.
Sorry. Dengue is called Breakbone fever. Chikungunya causes intense joint pain.
Sorry. Dengue is called Breakbone fever. Chikungunya causes intense joint pain.
Dr. Dave- it is posted in thread News for Oct.20, UK Bird posted a link.
Dr.Dave UK Bird posted at 09:37
Had the news from India just dried up? I can’t find anything current, much less informative. Does anybody have new infor?
Also, must mention before I forget; Botulism found in carrot juice in Canada, and U.s. Not many people sickened. Sold in 1 liter and 450 ml bottles; Bolthouse Farms 100% carrot Juice, Earthbound farm Orgamic carrot juice, President’s choice Organic 100% carrot juice(canada).
NEW DELHI: Dengue has affected nearly 7,000 people across the country while 1,665 people were afflicted with Chikungunya, the latest figures released by the government Saturday said.
While Dengue has affected 6,957 people and claimed 120 lives, no deaths due to Chikungunya have been reported . Though the government figure of dengue deaths stood at 120, reports from hospitals across the country put the toll at 135.
Cottontop--- I think you should have started a new thread for your post as it is not relavant to India.(Now if botulism would have been found in carrot juice in India that of course would be different.)Just kidding of course. Thankyou for that info.
the carrot juice thing was actually over a week ago - but thanx for mentioning it anyway - nothing to worry about - they have all been removed from the shelves - just a ‘one off’ like the spinach ecoli in CA
yea I know. It was late and I was heading out. In case people had those brands in stock and wasn’t aware of it.
Diwali cracker fumes dousing dengue
22 Oct, 2006 2318hrs / http://tinyurl.com/skqmx
NEW DELHI: The nip in the air and the thick Diwali smoke — it’s been lower this year as per the pollution data, but good enough to spell the doom for Aedes — could signal the beginning of the end of the dengue outbreak.
A week, is what experts predict, should take the disease to die its natural death. The number of fresh cases has already reduced, with 56 reported in the past 24 hours compared to 80–90 per day range since the beginning of the month.
Meanwhile, one person died at the AIIMS on Sunday, taking the dengue death toll in the Capital to 46. The total number of dengue cases in the Capital has now crossed the 2,000-mark, touching 2,051.
In 2003, the last epidemic year, the total number of cases reported was 2,882. Of the fresh cases reported in the past 24 hours, 22 were those who had visited the fever screening OPD of AIIMS and diagnosed with the disease, and had to be admitted.
Thirty others have been discharged from the hospital, which now has 179 dengue patients admitted and 60 others under observation.
The numbers attending the special OPD too have also halved with just 1,000 patients reporting in the past two days compared to about 1,000 patients per day earlier.
According to AIIMS medical superintendent, Dr D K Sharma: “This, to my mind, is the fallout of the lowering of temperature that causes the dengue mosquito to cease breeding. In about a week or so, we should see the end of the outbreak.”
Agrees Dr Anoop Misra, consultant, internal medicine, Fortis Group of Hospitals: “The virus has an incubation period of 3–13 days. As it is the mosquito density had been going down because of the temperature change and now the cracker smoke, even though it was lower this year, would be the final death knell. Even if the smoke was not that dense, the damage to Aedes has been done.”
The dengue mosquito, according to health experts, stops breeding at 18 degrees Celsius. The minimum temperature in the city on Sunday was 20 degrees Celsius.
Meanwhile, Delhi and NCR have so far seen 28 cases of chikungunya. The total number for the country is 1,665 with no confirmed deaths from the disease so far.
PAKISTAN: Fear of dengue fever spreads
22 Oct 2006 07:37:49 GMT / http://tinyurl.com/y2sn82
LAHORE, 20 October (IRIN) - Fear of the black and white striped mosquito responsible for spreading dengue fever has been keeping thousands of people indoors across the Pakistani provinces of Sindh and the Punjab.
Levels of concern have risen sharply, since the first cases of dengue virus - causing high fever, severe body aches and sometimes death if left untreated - were reported several weeks ago. There have been at least 20 deaths, almost all in the southern province of Sindh.
But the disease has now reached the Punjab. One woman suspected of having the disease in the town of Chakwal, about 80 km south of the federal capital Islamabad, died three days ago.
The deadly virus, carried by the Aedes mosquito, is not normally a hazard in Pakistan. Indeed little is known about the disease in the country, with some doctors in Lahore confessing they were forced to look up text books to confirm causes and symptoms, after first reports of the disease came in.
Dengue is more commonly found in South East Asia – but this year, it has rampaged across India with scores hospitalised. There have been at least 93 confirmed dengue deaths in India over the past six weeks.
Abdul Majeed, an official in the Sindh health department, told IRIN: “the situation is being closely monitored and we have set up special centers in hospitals.”
The warning signals from India and Sindh however do not appear to have been heeded by the government in the Punjab. Sources in the Punjab health department conceded they were taken “unaware” by the first reported cases, and struggled to devise a strategy.
“Dengue is often mistaken for flu, at least at first. Then the more severe symptoms, such as joint pain, eye pain, muscular aches and nausea usually strike,” Dr Asad Munir, a physician in Lahore, told IRIN
As the virus from infected mosquitoes expands its hold across Pakistan, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz has called for “International experts to be consulted” to help cope with the situation. The Chief Minister of the Punjab province, Chaudhry Pervez Ellahi, is also reported to have sought daily situation reports on the dengue situation to be provided to him.
Comment: I’m putting this here, as it is related to spread of dengue in the general area.
Two dengue cases identified in far-west Nepal
Xinhua / UPDATED: 13:16, October 22, 2006 / http://tinyurl.com/ydc6ez
Two cases of dengue disease that is transmitted through Aedes mosquitoes have been identified in Banke district, in far-west Nepal, local Nepal Samacharpatra daily reported Kathmandu on Sunday.
S.K. Mishra, professor at the Nepalgunj Medical College Teaching Hospital, some 700 km west of Kathmandu, was one of the victims, according to the newspaper report.
A team of specialists mobilized by the department of health identified the cases while carrying out health check-up of 16 people in the hospital.
The disease has no specific treatment but the patients need rest and a lot of fluids. The mosquito that carries the dengue viruses, produces eggs in clean water on contrary to other mosquitoes. Several people have died in India due to dengue.
Comment: Nepalgunj - this is the same area as in my post at 15:31 above. They are talking about the same medical staff here. Note the tests for dengue were negative, and it says the teaching hospital could not diagnose the disease. This teaching hospital at Nepalgungi is 6 km from the border with India. The hospital is less than 10 years old, and looks state-of-the-art.
NEPAL
2006–10–21 22:25:04 / http://tinyurl.com/w6e93
Indian doctors find Ghimire dengue affected
BANKE, Oct 22 - The Gandhi Memorial & Associated Hospitals in Lucknow has found symptoms of dengue in Ghanshyam Ghimire, 28, of Bageshwori-5.
After conducting a study through Rapid Diagnostic Kit, Nepali specialists had earlier given a dengue-negative report on Ghimire.
The specialists’ team from the division of epidemiology and disease control led by Dr GD Thakur that arrived in Nepalgunjhad given the negative report. Ghimire was diagnosed by the team after Nepalgunj Teaching Hospital suspected that he was dengue infected. The division has stated that it found dengue only in four persons so far.
However, Ghimire’s relatives had rushed him to Lucknow as his condition worsened. “The teaching hospital here could not identify the disease,” said Manorat Pyakurel, his relative, adding, “He could be saved only after we rushed him to Lucknow.”
The doctors and nurses in the hospital were not keen on our taking him to the Indian hospital, according to the family members. After the findings, Dr Thakur stated that he would do another test on Ghimire.
The specialist team had arrived in the town as Nepalgunj Medical College informed the district public office that it feared some patients admitted in local hospitals were suffering from the disease.
A team to study about mosquitoes spreading dengue in the area was supposed to arrive here last week from the division has not reached here so far.
More info on Nepalgunj Medical College : http://tinyurl.com/ygshr7
Thanks Pixie- You’re so right. Things just don’t add up.
Comment: Ok, follow along. Here’s a report from earlier this month - October 12th - that tells of several civilians being treated at Nepalgunj Medical College for suspected dengue.
Six feared down with dengue in Nepal
Thursday, 12 October, 2006 / http://tinyurl.com/yfmavh
KATHMANDU: After an outbreak of dengue in India, Nepal which shares an open border with its southern neighbour is showing concern with six people reportedly showing symptoms of the mosquito-borne disease in mid-western Nepal.
Six patients admitted to two hospitals in Nepalgunj, the main town in Banke district, showed symptoms of the disease, media reports in Nepal said yesterday.
After examining the patients at Nepalgunj Medical College and Kohalpur Teaching Hospital, the doctors there advised them to go to India for medical tests, Kantipur, Nepal’s largest daily, reported.
“Three patients were admitted in our hospital and on the basis of clinical examinations, we suspect them to be suffering from dengue,” M Kidwai, director of Nepalgunj Medical College, told the daily.
“However, as we do not have the facilities for conducting the advance test that could confirm the preliminary diagnosis, we have asked them to go to India.”
The three patients have been sent to King George Medical College in India’s Lucknow city.
One of the three, Kaluram Chaudhuri, is a migrant Nepali worker from Bardiya district in far western Nepal who had returned home from Rajasthan in India about a week ago. The 25-year-old had come to the hospital for treatment after a bout of fever.
Of the three others who went to the Kohalpur Teaching Hospital, 55-year-old Vidya Mahajan, who was suffering from high fever and haemorrhage, has been sent to New Delhi for treatment.
However, the district government health authorities professed ignorance about the suspected dengue patients.
After an outbreak of the disease in several India cities, resulting in the death of at least 51 people, according to unofficial figures four towns across the border in Nepal remain tense. Besides Nepalgunj, they are Biratnagar, home of Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, Chitwan, a popular tourist destination famed for its one-horned rhino and alligator population, and Birgunj, Nepal’s industrial hub. According to G D Thakur, chief of disease control at the Department of Health Services, the ades agepti, the mosquito that carries the virus, can easily come to Nepal via the open 1880km-border and even the daily Indo-Nepal flights.
The lack of diagnostic facilities in rural areas as well as small towns makes Nepal a vulnerable target for dengue. Hospitals on the Indo-Nepal border often prefer to ask patients to go to India for treatment.
Though some of the laboratories in the capital have the capability to conduct tests for dengue, it is often easier for Nepalis living along the border to cross over to Indian cities for treatment than travel all the way to Kathmandu.
After the disease assumed epidemic proportions in India, a private laboratory in the capital, Everest International Clinic, is offering free tests for dengue patients. There was no immediate official reaction to the reports yesterday.
Comment: More on the above. Reports were that the 6 in Nepalgunj had tested negative for dengue.
One dies in Nepal
Kathmandu: Nepal reported its first dengue related death on Saturday. On the basis of a clinical test it was confirmed that a resident of the Tikulim area of Gaur died of dengue, the state-run National News Agency (RSS) reported.
The patient died while being taken to the District Health Centre, it said.
Nepal Government issued an alert in southern parts after the spurt in dengue cases in neighbouring India.
Authorities said that there was no dengue case in Nepalgunj in Banke district bordering India.
All suspected dengue patients in the Nepalgunj Medical College were diagnosed negative, they said.
Sorry - the date of the post above for “One Dies in Nepal” was last Sunday, October 15th. http://tinyurl.com/yxudtn
Sorry to leave out that bit of critical information.
Comment: Just wondered if there was a regular flow of people between India and Nepalgunj, Nepal. Apparently the answer is Yes lately.
Peace Brings Nepalis Flocking Home in Droves
Nepalgunj, Nepal / October 19 / http://tinyurl.com/y337g2
More than 60,000 Nepalis, who had been displaced to neighbouring India for security reasons during the conflict period, have returned to Nepal via Nepalgunj transit point after the restoration of democracy in the country.
Some 25,000 Nepalis returned from India via Nepalgunj transit in between mid-September and mid-October alone, police personnel at the Jamunaha police post on the Nepal-India border said. <snip>
On an average, some 1000 Nepalis are returning home via Nepalgunj transit point daily, Rana Said. <snip>
NEW DELHI, India
24 Oct, 2006 / http://tinyurl.com/y5bjj9
Dengue cases wane, no deaths reported
No dengue deaths were reported in the city on Monday, though fresh cases continued to come into hospitals. However, they were much less in numbers, thanks to the dipping mercury levels.
In the past 24 hours, city hospitals have reported 53 fresh dengue cases — a drastic reduction to the 80–90 per day figure since the beginning of the month. The total figure in the Capital now stands at 2,104, of which, 1,337 cases are from within the city. The highest number of cases, 244, has been reported from the central zone, followed by Shahdara (north) which has reported 166 cases and Shahdara (south) with 145 cases.
At the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), 398 people were screened at the fever screening OPD, of which 41 patients were admitted after being diagnosed with dengue, while 31 patients have been discharged. The institute’s microbiology laboratory has tested 821 blood samples for dengue since August 15 and a total of 479 cases have been detected. <snip>
Comment: I am not sure what to make of the comments about chikungunya being marked by total organ failure and a higher mortality than dengue, if I am reading the doctor’s quote right.
Ludhiana, India
Oct. 23, 2006 / http://tinyurl.com/yga4wy
More haemorrgic dengue cases worry city doctors
The dengue mosquito continues to scare the city. Dengue patients with low platelet count and positive serology still continue to pour in at the hospitals in the city.
Doctors highlight that with the rise in the number of dengue patients, there is also an increase in patients suffering from internal bleeding of organs.
“Initially we had only about 10 per cent dengue patients who suffered from such problems. But in the last few days, almost 30 per cent patients are suffering from body organ bleeding,” says Dr. Akeshdeep Singh, consultant pulmonologist at Christian Medical College and Hospital (CMC&H).
Elaborating on the treatment and severity of haemorrgic dengue, Dr Anureet Gill of Satguru Partap Singh (SPS) Apollo Hospital says, “Usually only the serious dengue patients are admitted in the hospital. And if special care and proper treatment is given to them, the complications in the case may decrease’’.
About the complications that can be caused by dengue, Dr Raju Singh Chinna, Medical Superintendent of Dayanand Medical College and Hospital (DMC&H) highlights, “The mortality rate of this fever is usually low. The main concern of the doctors is to maintain the platelet count of the patients, unlike chickungunya where there is a complete failure of organs and the chances of death are very high’’.
Dr Anureet adds that there are four types of dengue fever, and proper care and check ups are necessary to monitor the patients’ condition.
“
“Mystery virus rattles Ahmedabad”Sept.15,2006 The Times of India,on Tuesday reported an alarming rise in the number of patients becoming critical due to a mysterious chikungunya-like viral fever.This fever has sent alarm bells ringing in the medical fraternity as it rapidly leads to nervous system complications,MOSTLY FATAL,especially in the elderly. AFFLICTED WITH THIS PARTICULAR VIRUS, THE PATIENTS FIRST COMPLAINED OF CHIKUNGUNYA -LIKE SYMPTOMS NAMELY FEVER, MUSCLE AND JOINT PAIN BUT WITHIN DAYS,DEVELOPED RASHES, LOW PLATELETS,KIDNEY COMPLICATIONS AND FINALLY HAD TO BE PUT ON A “VENTILATOR” www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com
388 fresh cases of dengue
Oct. 24, 2006 / http://tinyurl.com/ykacxl
Temperatures still conducive to mosquito breeding
One more death in Delhi Steady decline in cases
NEW DELHI: Only six States reported fresh dengue cases over the past 24 hours but the Government is cautious in its approach.
Briefing journalists here on Monday, National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme Director P.L. Joshi said while there was a decline, the temperatures had not fallen to the extent that would prevent mosquito breeding.
Of the 388 new cases reported in the past 24 hours, the maximum number was from Punjab (173), followed by Haryana (73), Rajasthan (71), Delhi (53), Chandigarh (15) and Andhra Pradesh (3). Two deaths — one in Delhi and the other in Rajasthan — were reported over the same period, taking the toll in the outbreak to 124.
Chikungunya incidence
As for chikungunya, the number of affected districts is down to 12 with 435 suspected cases reported during the last 24 hours.
Of the 18 samples sent to the National Institute of Virology, Pune, and the National Institute of Communicable Diseases in the capital, only one has tested positive. This confirmed case was reported from Delhi.
Kerala accounts for the largest number of suspected chikungunya cases with 321 reported from eight districtsAsked whether the fall in temperature was another reason for the decline in the dengue and chikungunya incidence, Dr. Joshi said the temperature stood at 20 degrees Celsius and this was still conducive to mosquito breeding.
West Bengal death toll 5
Kolkata Special Correspondent reports:
In West Bengal, the dengue death toll has risen to five. In all 675 persons were admitted to hospitals across the State, official sources said on Monday.
Fourteen fresh cases, including one in Kolkata city, were reported during the day.
Pixie—His comments are a complete and total turn-around from past statements.Sounds like things are spiraling futher out of control with the patients showing those symptoms.
witness, if while typing it’s hard to do or keep track of upper/lower case for whatever reason, use all lower case. e.e cummings did, and it turned out ok! :) thanks for your research and comments.
Witness - yes, I was not sure if the doctor’s comments were really what he said, which would be the opposite of what we have customarily heard, or if it was just a translation error.
Also, if you want to highlight a part of your text, the easiest way to do that is to bold the text. Just put 3 single quotation marks () just before and just after the portion you want to highlight. If there is punctuation at the end of a sentance you want to highlight, put the () 3 single quotation marks right before the punctuation.
oh, nevermind! Anyway, you put 3 of these before and after the part you want to highlight and then it should work, as seen above.
‘’‘
PAKISTAN
Eid travel brings dengue fever north 24 Oct 2006 17:28:27 GMT / http://tinyurl.com/ylwd7m
RAWALPINDI: An outbreak of the deadly dengue virus in southern Pakistan has now spread to the north, partly because more people have been travelling across the country for Eid, medical officials say.
The four-day national Eid ul-Fitr holiday, which marks the end of Ramadan, started on Tuesday and has seen thousands boarding trains, buses or coaches to visit family or return home.
Microbiologist Dr Abbas Hayat, head of the pathology department at Rawalpindi Medical College, close to the capital, Islamabad, expressed apprehension that “as more and more people arrive from areas in Sindh where the disease is endemic, there is a danger the epidemic will spread”.
Mosquitoes spreading the disease have ended up in buses or trains heading north; or those already infected with the virus in the south have been bitten by local mosquitoes at their destination, causing the disease to spread further.
Most often, the viral infection manifests itself as high fever, body aches and joint pains and most victims recover within a fortnight. However, in some cases, the disease takes the form of dengue haemorrahagic fever, which can cause uncontrollable bleeding, leading to death if not treated swiftly.
There have been cases in Peshawar, the capital of the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), in the Islamabad and the city of Rawalpindi that lies adjacent to it.
Hundreds of patients are in hospital in the Islamabad and Rawalpindi areas and on Monday Rawalpindi saw its first confirmed death from the disease.
Mehreen Bano, 14, a patient brought to the Cantonment General Hospital (CGH) in Rawalpindi from the nearby village of Pindigheb, died within an hour of being admitted. The girl was reported to have been suffering high fever and nose bleeds for several days.
“Mehreen was brought to the hospital on Monday morning, but her condition was severe and she died within half an hour,” Dr Shafiqur Rehman, the medical officer at the CGH, told IRIN. Out of 77 blood samples sent for testing from the Rawalpindi area to the National Institute of Health (NIH) in Islamabad, 14 have tested positive for the dengue virus. It is believed dozens more, currently either in hospital or discharged after initial treatment, could be suffering from the disease.
However, a severe shortage of testing kits at hospitals has made it difficult to determine the numbers infected. Hospitals across the country are currently demanding testing kits, with more and more suspected patients coming in daily.
The long Eid break has added to the problems in acquiring new kits and pharmaceutical companies involved in importing the kits say it could be two weeks or longer before more can be brought in. “It is a case of market dynamics. The demand is unusual and we were not ready for it, Peshawar-based pharmacist Fazal Afzal said.
Health experts across the country have warned that the dengue epidemic could assume still more serious proportions over the coming days, due to a continuing lack of sufficient public awareness and a failure to take measures to prevent breeding of the Aedes mosquito, which carries the virus.
The onset of colder weather, which would kill of the mosquitoes, is seen as the main hope in stopping the rapid spread of the disease.
There have so far been 432 confirmed cases of dengue in the southern port city of Karachi, the capital of the Sindh province. At least 12 people have died since the outbreak hit in mid-September, the World Health Organization (WHO) has said. While more than 160 patients are still hospitalised in Karachi, the epicentre of the mosquito-transmitted epidemic. At least another 1,500 people in the province are thought to be infected.
All hospitals in Peshawar, Rawalpindi and Islamabad have been placed on high alert, and isolation wards have been set up at them for patients showing symptoms of dengue.
Question: Why all the need for isolation wards if dengue fever doesn’t spread h2h? gina
Gina— you must be mistaken,there is nothing to see here. Please move along.
That was my thought as well. They keep talking about this dengue as if it is a conmuniable diease.
Shhh! ‘you know who’ might hear you talking about dengue again. Better go over to the other thread ;-)
Hurricane Alley : beds of dengue patients are often screened with mosquito nets because the dengue patients can act as vectors to infect mosquitoes who can then infect other people. Dengue is under no circumstances transmissible from human to human.
Dengue is endemic in all of South Asia and South-East Asia and now is the season during which, in some years, it reaches epidemic proportions. I suppose the reason the dengue cases are scrutinised here is that it might mask an outbreak of BF H2H, but there is no sign of this at present.
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
431 confirmed cases of dengue virus in Karachi
Wednesday, October 25, 2006 / http://tinyurl.com/ydfkzt
ISLAMABAD: A total of 431 cases of dengue fever of the 1,392 reported cases in Karachi hospitals have been confirmed positive so far, said Syed Anwar Mahmood, federal health secretary, on Tuesday.
Twenty-five people have died of the virus in Karachi, Mr Mahmood told a press conference here on Tuesday. There have been no reported deaths from the disease in Islamabad and Rawalpindi, but 16 cases have been confirmed in Rawalpindi and 15 in Islamabad. A total of 77 cases have been reported in the twin cities.
Mr Mahmood said there were confirmed dengue cases in four other cities also: one in Peshawar, three each in Chakwal and Khushab and four in Kotli. The health secretary said all major hospitals in Karachi and the twin cities had enough diagnostic kits and treatment facilities and they would be ready to receive patients on Eid day.
He said the holidays of staff at all hospitals and the federal health department had been cancelled. The World Health Organisation has offered Pakistan technical assistance to with the dengue outbreak, Mahmood said.
Online adds: Dengue has reached Jacobabad as a patient with symptoms of high fever and headache tested positive for the disease. Hafizur Rehman was admitted to a local hospital with high fever and headache and was shifted to a Karachi hospital when his condition deteriorated.
testing 123 (((highlight))) testing 456
testing “”“hightlight”“” testing 456
testing highlight testing 456 (sorry folks)
okidokie- are we having some “down time?”
Could someone post, by country, the number of dengue infections and deaths, similar to the summary of bird flu counts posted under the daily thread? It might come in handy if this is really bird flu and not dengue.
And maybe a category for “unusually severe” cases, ie with organ failure and/or hemorrhage.
http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IEQ20061025011614&Page=Q&Title=ORISSA&Topic=0 First dengue case to be reconfirmed Wednesday October 25 2006 11:37 IST ANGUL: The State Government is likely to go for further test of the blood sample of CISF jawan Suresh Kumar who has been detected dengue positive by Lal Pathology, a Delhi-based laboratory. The pathological test of his blood sample had indicated presence of weak dengue virus which is normally found in other viral diseases, said Chief Medical Officer of NTPC-Kaniha P R Biswas. He said the CISF constable, now stable at Kalinga Hospital in Bhubaneswar, showed other symptoms besides severe fever and body ache. He also clarified that no other case has been reported in NTPC-Kaniha areas since Kumar’s infection. A second examination by any government laboratory has been recommended by Chief District Medical Officer Khageswar Behera and the same has been apprised to the Health Department, Biswas said. Confirmation by a government laboratory is required, he added. Meanwhile, a five-member team from SCB Medical, Cuttack arrived at Kaniha to study the case. Besides discussions with doctors, the team would also look out for ‘aedes’ mosquitoes in that area.
TallyPrepper - at 11:19:
This man in Kalinga hospital is the first case of dengue found in the state of Orissa. I am not sure what they mean by “he showed other symptoms besides severe fever and body ache” or why they are retesting him, since the first reports were that he was positive for dengue. http://tinyurl.com/yzf3wr
Tink & Jane:
I think it is not so much the tested and confirmed dengue cases that we should watch, but those that are “suspected” dengue but are not included in the “confirmed” counts.
cottontop – at 09:18 okidokie- are we having some “down time?” only 3 minutes worth LOL
okidokie- thought I was on the humor thread at first! anyway, I got a chuckle.
Pixie – at 11:35 I guess what bothered me about the article was that they were sending out 5 medical people immediately to the site even though it is only one unconfirmed case. Why would they do this? The case already tested positive for dengue once. It makes no sense, unless the additional symptoms that were not provided in the article made them concerned enough to go right away to the site. This article has peaked my interest.
Sniffles - at 12:44
Yup, mine too. Somebody already pointed out that medical staff in this area of the world should know what dengue looks like, and the blood test was done in New Delhi. I wondered about that medical team of 5 being sent to hospital too. It sounds a lot like the special medical team that was sent last week to investigate the dengue at Nepalgunj hospital in Nepal. That article posted by Tally Prepper at 11:19 also said that:
“The pathological test of his blood sample had indicated presence of weak dengue virus which is normally found in other viral diseases..”
I really don’t know what to make of that either.
Pixie – at 14:32 “The pathological test of his blood sample had indicated presence of weak dengue virus which is normally found in other viral diseases..”
I really don’t know what to make of that either.
I wondered about that comment as well. I have not heard them state anything like that regarding any of the other dengue cases. If this is the same/similar medical team that was sent to investigate the cases in Nepal, I have a feeling we hear just as much about the case and potentially any other cases that may be in the area as we did in Nepal: nothing. As soon as the medical team arrived onsite in Nepal, the information vanished. I wonder if this same phenomenon will occur with this case too.
“Shiv Sena accuses govt of suppressing dengue figure-New Delhi- Oct 12 Roughly 20,000 people are affected by dengue in Delhi’s private and government hospitals. ----( That’s just in New Delhi.That’s a whole lot of underreporting going on.)www.webindia123.com
“Test cricketer Shadab Kabir infected by dengue virus” ----When I first saw this headline, I made a mental note to be aware of any other cricket players getting dengue. I found this today. They don’t exactly play on the same team, but maybe have crossed paths and I find it strange that India is playing it down----“ India play down rumours of Greg King’s Illness”Greg King ,the indian trainer, has been admitted to a hospital in Ahmedabad with a viral fever.The news spread late on Wed. evening and created a buzz among the media,as several stories did the rounds claiming that King was suffering from chikungunya.(Greg King is an indian cricket trainer.)
With reference the blood test indicating weak presence of the virus - can they tell if there are virus or antibodies - do these show differently? As Dengue is quite common, this person may be carrying antibodies from a previous attack? Sorry, I do not know much about pathology
This article is a bit shocking. I hope the superior minds of this site can put it under a microscope.----“Chickengunya,dengue cases in 595 Marathwada villages” April 10,2006---About 52,000 people from the region have been affected by the outbreak of fever. Around 1057 blood samples were sent to the National Institute of Virology of which 137 had tested positive for chickengunya and 69 for dengue.-----Ok, here are my questions. I thought they were in the dangerous time now for dengue. What’s up with 52,000 people sick in April of this year? Could that have been what was experienced in 1918 with a mild outbreak in the spring and then the real deal in the fall?What do you all make of this? www.webindia123.com It really can’t be explained away because most of these people tested negative for dengue.
If it were a flu that was transmissible enough to cause these numbers of cases we should have seen it spread far and wide. As far as I am aware, we haven’t - although there was a bad flu B going round late last year.
Well, the international press may yet get interested in the story of mystery illness in India. Just saw a TV report that Angelina Jolie has just passed out on the set of her new movie in India. This is apparently the third time she has become ill in a month. Stay tuned for news at 11. :)
Comment: We should start seeing a shop drop in dengue suspects now in New Delhi due to the changing weather.
Drop in dengue cases means fewer frantic calls at AIIMS
Thursday, October 26, 2006 / http://tinyurl.com/yn6xmc
Dengue cases have dropped mercifully in the past week and so have the frantic calls that doctors at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) were attending to on the hospital’s special helpline.
‘People have become more relaxed and calmed down in the past week since the day temperatures have started to dip,’ said a health official in the hospital.
‘Earlier, we were receiving around 150 panic calls on an average everyday, but in the past week the number has declined to nearly 40, which is around 65 percent lower,’ said Bir Singh, a senior AIIMS faculty member heading the helpline section.
He said the hospital had begun a study on the number of dengue patients and the calls received this year. ‘We have received over 6,000 calls from the second week of September onwards,’ said Singh.
‘We started getting fewer calls from last week when the skies suddenly became overcast and there was a little rain, making it much cooler,’ said Singh. The wintry chill is not conducive for the breeding of the dengue-virus carrying aedes aegypti mosquito.
According to Singh, during the beginning of the dengue outbreak in early September, the helpline functioned for around seven hours a day. But seeing the frequency of calls and the number of patients coming in, the helpline hours were increased to 12 a day. ‘The helpline was working from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. earlier, but considering the frequency of calls we extended the help line from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. We started another help line on the mobile phone between 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.,’ he said.
Even after increasing the help line duration and the doctors attending to dengue patients, the number of panic calls kept on rising. The rise in the number of calls was due to more dengue cases being reported and the fear that had gripped peoples’ minds, said a senior doctor.
‘Most of the calls received at the helpline centre were absolutely frivolous and due to the fear psychosis gripping the people,’ said D.K. Sharma, AIIMS medical superintendent. He said people would inquire about blood platelet counts even when they were having a body ache. He said that some of the common queries were - ‘I have slight fever, am I suffering from dengue?’ and ‘I have body ache should I check my blood platelets?’ ‘These are the kinds of call we used to get everyday,’ said Sharma, adding that these calls were understandable because people were frightened and under constant terror of being affected by dengue.
With the dengue fever now on the wane, the hospital has also decided to withdraw some of its special services. The help line has been brought back to the earlier 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. ‘Now people call up with more inquisitive questions - on the causes of dengue and the ways to protect themselves. They seem to be calmer and composed,’ said Sharma.
‘The other reason to calm down people was Diwali. Many feel the breeding of mosquitoes will stop due to the smoke from the bursting of firecrackers. We do not have any scientific explanation behind such a thought.’
The dengue virus has claimed nearly 47 lives in the national capital since early September. The death toll from dengue across the country stood at 129 and total number of patients in the country stood at 7,749 till Wednesday.
The dengue virus is spread through the bite of the female aedes aegypti mosquito that breeds in stagnant water. The symptoms of the disease are high fever, skin rashes and pain in the joints. A sharp drop in the patient’s blood platelet count can prove fatal.
Child deaths soar as mosquito-borne viruses plague India…
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20061026/hl_afp/indiahealth_061026093557
witness – at 02:21
I hope this isn’t the Shiva from my pandemic dream.
The dengue situation is about as we last left it in India and Pakistan. However, can anyone suggest why the dengue patients are wearing surgical masks in this picture of patients in bed in hospital in Pakistan (it may be something they do routinely, I just am not familiar with it)? http://tinyurl.com/y4f87t
Otherwise, cases of suspected dengue are down in India, up slightly in Pakistan.
Pixie- I wonder if the mosquito infects India and Pakistan at the same time?
cottontop-21:28
The species of mosquito Aedes Egypti which is recognized as the main dengue vector (transmitter) lives in both countries. In fact it is actually widespread throughout the world in tropical and subtropical regions (has even been spreading throughout the southeastern U.S. and even recently into urban areas of southern Arizona). I recently heard it suggested that Aedes Albopictus might be a potential vector, but I haven’t heard anything definite. That is more an old world mosquito (especially Asia), but is known now as a recently introduced species in the warmer areas of the eastern U.S.
What I see as interesting is that dengue right now is so widespread. I know every year there are outbreaks at this time of year but I don’t remember it being a problem in so many places at once. But the best I can tell, all this dengue and chik. going on makes seeing what’s going on with BF more difficult. I hope it’s not ‘in the mix.’
cottontop - 21:28
Looks like wiki timed out as I submitted before. Lemme try again.
The species generally recognized as the main transmitter for dengue, aedes egypti is widespread throughout the tropics/subtropics old world and new including both India and Paki. It’s even recently been spreading throughout the southeast U.S. and creeping north of the border into urban areas of Arizona recently. Dengue is even conceivably a threat in the U.S. now that they’re here but it hasn’t happened yet.
I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a particular outbreak over so large a region all at once like this before though. I know I heard one report that a number of (or all) the Delhi cases were in people who’d travelled up from southern India. Then perhaps mosquitos there are biting those infected and the transmission cycle could sustain itself up there. But were there dengue cases in Nepal, Tibet? I remember hearing about some sort of illness up there (it’s getting hard to keep track). I don’t think Ae. Egypti live there though there may be other species that could possibly transmit it, just maybe not as well (like aedes albopictus - Asian Tiger Mosquito). I had heard recently that it does have the ability to transmit, but it was brand new news to me so not sure if that’s correct. Incidentally, that mosquito can live in slightly cooler regions than Ae. Egypti and though is an old world mosquito, has been recognized as a spreading introduced species in warmer parts of the eastern U.S.
cottontop - 21:28
Looks like wiki timed out as I submitted before. Lemme try again.
The species generally recognized as the main transmitter for dengue, aedes egypti is widespread throughout the tropics/subtropics old world and new including both India and Paki. It’s even recently been spreading throughout the southeast U.S. and creeping north of the border into urban areas of Arizona recently. Dengue is even conceivably a threat in the U.S. now that they’re here but it hasn’t happened yet.
I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a particular outbreak over so large a region all at once like this before though. I know I heard one report that a number of (or all) the Delhi cases were in people who’d travelled up from southern India. Then perhaps mosquitos there are biting those infected and the transmission cycle could sustain itself up there. But were there dengue cases in Nepal, Tibet? I remember hearing about some sort of illness up there (it’s getting hard to keep track). I don’t think Ae. Egypti live there though there may be other species that could possibly transmit it, just maybe not as well (like aedes albopictus - Asian Tiger Mosquito). I had heard recently that Ae. Alb. does have the ability to transmit, but it was brand new news to me so not sure if that’s correct. Incidentally, that mosquito can live in slightly cooler regions than Ae. Egypti and though is an old world mosquito, has been recognized as a spreading introduced species in warmer parts of the eastern U.S.
Here’s the puzzling thing about the pattern we are seeing of new dengue cases. While it is still quite warm in New Delhi, India, and in Karachi, Pakistan (both of which have seen new dengue cases this week), it has recently been getting much cooler in Islamabad/Rawalpindi, Pakistan, and Nepalgunj, Nepal.
We are told that the Aedes mosquito does not reproduce at temperatures of below 19 or 18 degrees celcius. Reports that we have heard from New Delhi, India, have repeatedly suggested that they believe that their dengue epidemic will soon end because nightime temperatures will soon be dipping below 19 degrees celsius (65 degrees Farenheit) thus significantly lessening their problem with the mosquito vector.
Nightime lows, then, in both Islamabad/Rawalpindi and in Nepalgunj should now be low enough to be ending their problems with dengue. (13 degrees C = 55 degrees F).
From the BBC Weather Centre:
From Wunderground:
Pixie at 21:16---
mmmmm, maybe the dengue virus has mutated to become airborne?
Sorry, I couldn’t resist.
Pixie—Thanks for your comments and reports.Through a very studied approach you understand that this just doesn’t make sense.I can tell you are not quick to jump to conclusions. You are carefully looking at the facts. I really appreciate your time and posts.The “dengue defense” has so far worked for India, so why shouln’t Pakistan and others use it too? Whatever these mystery diseases are,we will find out soon enough.
Pixie - the masks are used to keep the mosquitoes from flying out of thier mouths silly!
Sadly, a report like this from anywhere would have caused us all to be on high alert.Now this just seems kinda normal.(For India anyway}
“MP Govt. fails to act on disease outbreak”-- Sun. Oct.15 2006-At least 100 people have died in the Chambal belt of Madhya Pradesh from a disease which the government has failed to identify.
“A young boy Rajju was taken to the district hospital in Shivpuri after two weeks of very high fever. He now bleeds from the nose and mouth.”
The hospital in Shivpuri is flooded with patients reporting high fever and severe joint pains. All wards are full with viral fever patients.www.ndtv.com
Bump as important
Pixie,
Perhaps we should give it some time for the little buggers to wind down as things cool off, and the people who may have contracted Dengue in the past couple weeks to trickle (or flood) into the news.
When the temperature drops, I wonder what other disease will be sited instead of dengue as the cause of their symptoms? I realize that dengue has been around for many years and that people in these parts of the world do get this disease each year, but some of these symptoms and how they are being treated in the hospitals (masks over their faces) do not make sense to me either.
johnO - at 17:56
I totally agree. People have been moving around a lot due to the holiday, too, so it can be difficult to tell where someone may have been infected.
Witness - at 1:12
I really don’t like that story. I don’t understand why a disease like that remains unidentified (and whenever I hear of symptoms like this boy’s, it reminds me too much of the symptoms of the kids in Turkey).
I am certain that most of what is reported as dengue or chik is dengue or chik. There is a lot of disease and a lot of people in this part of the world. I do think that the reports of unusual and undiagnosed illnesses with flu-like symptoms do bear simple watching, though.
Cold weather dengue.
Ok, ok, I’ll go back to my corner now.
“Deadly virus spreading in Pakistan” (((The deadly virus carried by the Aedes mosquito, is not normally a hazard in Pakistan))).
(((Indeed little is known about the disease in the country, with some doctors in Lahore confessing they were forced to look up text books to confirm causes and symptoms, after first reports of the disease came in))).
(((Dengue is more commonly found in South East Asia-but this year,it has rampaged across India with scores hospitalised))).
I know that there have been questions about whether or not this was all normal.Well, evidently it’s not.
Ok, what did I do wrong? I was trying to put the areas with the 3 quotation marks in bold.(Please don’t laugh too hard).If you would like to read the whole article just google the title.
Witness 19:18 use this ‘ that is the one on the same key as “ next to the big ENTER key. Do that Three times around what you want to highlight. Delete any other punctuation in between the three such as “ when someone is being quoted in an article or it will still mess up your highlighting. I am not an expert highlighter myself and have messed it up alot/, hope this helps.
Thanks Influentia2-I give it a try.
“Ignorance weakens fight against Dengue fever”--Karachi
“ Other misconceptions which have been propagated during the spread of the virus include claims that paramedics were contracting the disease while treating patients.
“He added that at many hospitals,patients are being kept in isolation wards with the staff treating them wearing masks and gloves which is also not necessary.
It sounds to me like the people on the front lines might believe this might be contagious. One thing I am also starting to see as I scan news items are the many familial cases.www.thenews.com
Yay!!
Excellent witness!
From same article,but quite important.
The mortality rate of DHF is hardly 2 percent while our data shows an alarmingly high 5–10 percent only because of improper disease management,Dr Khanahi warned.(whatever that means)
Comment: Still more dengue cases in Islamabad/Rawalpindi (which are two sister cities like Minneapolis/St. Paul) even though the weather is cooling there.
Dengue cases go up in Pakistan
Submitted by kashif on Sat, 2006–10–28 22:08. Muslim World News / http://tinyurl.com/w9tn3
Islamabad, Oct 28 (Xinhua) The number of dengue fever afected patients rose Saturday to 1,772 in Pakistan, according to a report from the website of local newspaper The News.
In the last 24 hours, 19 new patients were admitted to the hospitals with signs and symptoms of dengue fever from Islamabad and Rawalpindi.
According to statistics of Pakistani National Institute of Health, blood samples of 89 suspected dengue fever patients have been received, out of which 39 cases have been diagnosed positive.
In Islamabad, 21 out of 61 suspected dengue fever cases were found positive.
Comment: They are making special arrangements for dengue patients in hospitals, and are setting up isolation wards for them. Two brothers have both been struck with dengue hemorrhagic fever - can can someone familiar with dengue comment on the odds of that happening.
Number of Dengue Fever patients rises to 1800 in Pakistan
By Sarah Kamal ‘Pakistan Times’ Special Correspondent / Oct. 28, 2006 / http://tinyurl.com/y9bqf2
<snip>
Two Die in Punjab
A report from Lahore says that the management of Sheikh Zaid hospital has been tight-lipped on deaths of two dengue fever patients in the hospital whereas four more patients infected by dengue virus have been detected.
Two patients of dengue fever, Moinuddin of Syed Mitha Bazar area and Abdul Qadeer were died in the hospital, while four more patients being kept in a special ward of the hospital.
Meanwhile, a meeting of Sheikh Zaid hospital management was held with administrator Dr. Saboor Malik in chair, to review the special arrangements made for the dengue patients in the hospital.
Tests in SW Pakistan
To prevent against dengue fever, NWFP government directed Saturday to set up isolation wards in all district headquarter hospitals and make arrangements conduct the tests of disease.
In a meeting presided over by NWFP Additional Chief Secretary Ghulam Dastagir, it was told that like other parts of the country, dengue fever can possibly run rampant in the province.
Thus far, only two persons are diagnosed positive for dengue fever and both ran the disease while they were in Sindh. One child from among them has died.
Additional Chief Secretary directed the issuance of one million rupee to each district headquarter hospital. He directed to conduct the anti-mosquito spray over ponds and streams.
The meeting decided to wage a mass awareness campaign to prevent against dengue fever.
Takes Life of Child
According to another report, following Karachi, Sindh interior, Islamabad and Rawalpindi, dengue fever seemed to have entered the NWFP province also, as the World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed the death of a child, 7 with all the symptoms of suffering from the dengue fever.
According to media reports, WHO Medical Officer, Dr. Mohammad Saeed Akbar Khan in operation in NWFP and Fata told that the National Institute of Health, Islamabad had diagnosed Mohammad Jamil, 7 resident of the village Meera of Kabal Tehsil in Swat suffered from Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever (DHF).
Jamil, who died on Thursday, was admitted into the Khayber Teaching Hospital on October 15 after struck by high fever, he said.
Dr. Mohammad Saeed told that one DHF patient was brought to Khayber Tehsil Hospital, while the other one Mukhtiyar Ahmad to the District Headquarter Hospital, Swabi.
He told that Mukhtiyar was brought from the Landhi area of Karachi, where his brothers also suffering from DHF were under treatment. He told that the blood samples of the patients have been sent to Islamabad for test.
On the other hand, the ministry of health told that 1576 cases of dengue fever were detected thus far since October 2 in Sindh, while in Islamabad 21 and Rawalpindi 39 persons were diagnosed dengue positive.
The ministry said that the dengue in Sindh has taken the toll of 27 lives and 78 dengue patients have been admitted into the different hospitals in Karachi during the last 24 hours, while in the same period 92 patients were discharged from the hospitals in Karachi and Sindh after the recovery from dengue fever.
Witness - 22:08
I am very interested to see the familial cases from the link you have. But when I open the link, it opens up a nested menu system. Can you tell me the correct path through the links to see the article you mention? That’s too juicy a tidbit to not read.
Thanks!
John0 —I am starting to see the familial links as I read the different articles. Pixie has one in her article above at 22:29. I will start posting them as I see them.But because of my limited computer skills you’ll have to google the title of the articles.
Pixie, Here’s my comment----yeah,right
JohnO - here’s the link for witness’ story at 22:08 from “The News International.”
Thanks you witness, pixie and others for your hard work on this thread. Lets stay on this like frosting on cake until we are satisfied all these cases really are dengue.
If these were confirmed H5N1 cases what would you all be saying now?
4
only 4?
In knew you’d say that!
5 needs bigger clusters.
technically.
I’d also say “hello Walton’s? yes, please send me 600 lbs of wheat.”
and I’d be telling my schools to get ready to close.
Courtesy of the CDC. While researching Central America, I stumbled across the figure that 50 million people contract dengue every year.
In 2005, dengue is the most important mosquito-borne viral disease affecting humans; its global distribution is comparable to that of malaria, and an estimated 2.5 billion people live in areas at risk for epidemic transmission (Figure 4). Each year, tens of millions of cases of DF occur and, depending on the year, up to hundreds of thousands of cases of DHF. The case-fatality rate of DHF in most countries is about 5%, but this can be reduced to less than 1% with proper treatment. Most fatal cases are among children and young adults.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/msid-223059,curpg-1.cms
Tamiflu helped avert outbreak of bird flu
NEW DELHI: The deadly H5N1 bird flu virus that hit India in February 2006 was sensitive to Tamiflu, the drug which many governments including India used to ward off a deadly bird flu pandemic.
Genetic and DNA sequencing of the virus collected from Jalgaon and Navapur by scientists from Bhopal’s High Security Animal Disease Laboratory, has revealed that the virus contained several types of amino acids - glutamic acid, asparigine, histidine and arvinone - that made it sensitive to Tamiflu.
This, scientists say, helped India avert a possible transmission of the deadly H5N1 virus from birds to humans.
Scientists B Patnaik and C Tosh, who have completed sequencing the genes HA1 and HA2 of the virus and studying the 10 proteins, specially HA and NA present in the virus, told TOI that “timely administering of Tamiflu to those who were quarantined on suspicions of having been in contact with H5N1 virus infected birds, helped us avert the transmission of the virus to humans.
DNA analysis of the virus has shown it to be highly sensitive to Tamiflu”. According to lab chief H K Pradhan, some countries including Vietnam have reported that the virus circulating there is resistant to Tamiflu making its containment even more difficult.
“Our DNA tests, conducted of the HA, NA, NS1 and PV2 proteins, showed the virus that hit India was capable of infecting mammals, including humans. Therefore, a Tamiflu resistant virus would have resulted in people being infected by the bird flu virus easily, ultimately resulting in their mortality.”
The scientists have made another interesting discovery. They say the virus that hit India, specially the one that was isolated from the outbreak in Navapur, had mutated and undergone a re-assortment in Turkey.
This means that the virus, which had originated in Qinghai (central China), was carried to Turkey by migratory birds. Here, the virus mutated and mixed with the Vietnamese strain. The mixed strain was then brought to India by migratory birds. This phenomenon of being hit by a re-assorted virus has not been reported from any other country over the past four years.
“The influenza virus mutates quickly. So did the H5N1 virus that came to India. Turkey is one of the few countries where both the Chinese and Vietnamese strain have been found.
“The virus that was found in Navapur was a mixed strain. That’s why we believe the mixing happened in Turkey. While the NA was the Vietnamese type, the HA was Chinese,” Pradhan added.
This thread has got very long so I have started a new thread here
I have taken the last few postings across.