Nagpur: After a gap of six years,
Chandipura virus has made a comeback in the region. Though authorities are claiming that apparently these six cases are among certain sporadic cases and there is no cause to panic about the resurfacing of the disease, finding of these cases suggests that the virus is still around.
Six positive cases of Chandipura were detected accidentally in Dhanora taluka of Gadchiroli district. These cases were detected after a patient died of some ailment and it was found that he had died of viral encephalitis. “Following this, serum samples of some persons in the area were collected and sent to National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune. Of these, six tested to be Chandipura positive but there have been no serious cases or death so far,” said Dr Milind Ganvir, additional director health services (ADHS) in malaria department.
The virus had wreaked havoc in 2005 in east Vidarbha and it had again affected many people in 2009-10 when 93 persons had tested positive and 30 children had died. In 2012 again, the virus had killed 17 persons, majority of them children. In 2011, there were two deaths in Bhandara and one in Gadchiroli districts.
The Chandipura virus is transmitted through sand fly especially where cattle are kept in unclean cattle sheds. It can be controlled by spraying of malathion and lindane powder.
