Surge in vector-borne diseases in city

Could the sudden surge in vector-borne diseases in Hyderabad be a result of let down in entomology services and use of non-standard diagnostic tests in private hospitals? Health camps being conducted in the city suggest so.

For about four days now, the district health administration and GHMC have been conducting camps in 41 of 111 areas recognised as vulnerable. The camps were necessitated after Hyderabad district saw a sharp rise in number of dengue and malaria cases this year, mainly in January, which subsequently dropped with the onset of summer. However, in the first four months, the number of cases was twice of that recorded a year ago.

While authorities have officially maintained that the rise in numbers could be attributed to increased surveillance and unseasonal rains, sources revealed the use of entomology staff to collect property taxes towards 2017-end could have allowed vectors to breed unhindered.

Testing for dengue through rapid tests is not to be taken as confirmation, but officials admit that such results reported often creep into the numbers. Given that the number of positive cases diagnosed at the camps has been negligible, authorities do not expect the numbers to rise until after the onset of monsoon.

GHMC’s Chief Entomology Officer V. Venkatesh said nearly a quarter of the cases detected in the city turned to be in people who reside in surrounding districts. “The general mosquito menace has now come down. That apart, the rise in numbers cannot be attributed to staff being diverted, which happens every year at a particular time. There have been no let down in entomology operations,” he said.

The number of cases detected in the camps so far has been negligible, which indicates the GHMC’s measures to control vectors are showing results GHMC officials claim.