Palghar: Centre's five-member team visits after 7-year-old girl tests positive for Zika virus

A five-member team from the Union Health department led by Dr Arvind Alonne on Friday afternoon visited the Zai ashramshala as well as the Dehri and Gholwad Primary Health Centres (PHCs) to take stock of the situation after a 7-year-old girl student of a government ashramshala in Zai, Talasari was tested with Zika virus on July 13, confirmed Dr Ritesh Patel, Taluka Medical Officer (TMO) Talasari.

The first case of Zika virus was reported on 30 July 2021 after a 50-year-old woman from Belsar in Purandhar taluka, Pune tested positive and she has fully recovered.

Besides, seven students have tested positive for swine flu and are admitted in the Cottage Hospital, Dahanu and all are responding to treatment, said Dr Patel.

The team also took a meeting of all the doctors and ordered them to take preventive action and also checked the food, water and boarding facilities at the ashramshala.

In the meantime, all 192 students of the ashramshala have been sent home till further notice. Around 23 blood samples have been taken and sent to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune on Saturday and its report is expected on Monday, said the official.

The Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) workers are visiting each of the houses of the 192 students daily to take their temperature, pulse and oxygen levels as a precautionary measure, said Dr Patel.

We have started screening of men, women, children and special attention is being paid to pregnant women as they are susceptible and if they are showing symptoms of fever we will also send blood samples to NIV, Pune, he said.

Dr Patel said the Zika virus infection is a moderate disease and majority of patients do not get any symptoms and some have flu-like symptoms. We have advised people not to panic, he said.

He said the Zika virus spreads through Aedes aegypti mosquitoes and common symptoms include fever, body ache and conjunctivitis and added that no deaths have been reported due to the infection.

Published on: Saturday, July 16, 2022, 07:12 PM IST