Over 20 people have caught a bad bout of influenza and viral fevers this week in the remote village of Gangapalem in Marripudi mandal, prompting the Prakasam district administration to send a team of health officials to the village.
A District Rapid Response Team was deployed following media reports that about 50 persons in the village, which comes under the Marripudi Public Health Centre, were down with flu and fever.
“The situation is under control in the village,” District Medical and Health Officer (DMHO) S. Rajyalakshmi said on Saturday. Team members collected serum and water samples from affected patients for analysis.
“The PHC has been stocked with enough medicines to treat fevers,” Dr. Rajyalakshmi added.
PHC Medical Officer Ch. Sangeetha said 23 cases were reported since March 3.
Nineteen persons were discharged after medical treatment. While three others were still undergoing treatment at different private hospitals, a person was being treated at the PHC at Marripudi, she said.
Poor hygiene
Unhygienic conditions in the village was responsible for the outbreak of fever, Dr. Rajyalakshmi said, attributing the incidence of fever to the prolonged use of stagnant drinking water.
The DMHO advised people to change drinking water once in every two days and not use stored water beyond that. She also advised the villagers to compulsorily use mosquito nets in order to prevent incidence of vector-borne diseases.