Laboratory tests of samples of dead monkeys, blood samples of suspected patients and examination of ticks from Dakshina Kannada have been found negative for Kyasanur Forest Disease, said District Health and Family Welfare Officer M. Ramakrishna Rao said here on Wednesday.
Talking to reporters, Dr. Rao said that of the 22 monkeys that were found dead in the district this year, samples were extracted only in five cases and sent for examination to the National Institute of Virology, Pune. These five cases were of the monkeys found dead in Koila, Kaniyur, Shiradi, Charmadi and Naravi villages in the district. All these samples were found negative for Kyasanur Forest Disease, he said.
The Health Department sent for examination seven tick pools collected from parts of Kadaba, Ujire and Padangady. Of the seven, five tick pools were found negative for Kyasanur Forest Disease. As many as 11 blood samples of suspected Kyasanur Forest Disease-infected patients had been sent to laboratories in Shivamogga and Manipal and they too have been found negative for Kyasanur Forest Disease, he said. Dr. Rao said that the Health Department is keeping a close watch on the deaths of monkeys in the district and continuing the tick survey work.