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5 girl students found positive with Japanese encephalitis at Odisha hostel
On Saturday evening, an Std 10 girl of the hostel, who had complained of nausea and headache, passed away at Balasore district headquarters hospital a day after she was admitted
At least five girl students of Purubai Kanyashram hostel in the coastal Balasore district have tested positive for Japanese encephalitis two days after they were admitted to a government hospital complaining of fever, headache, and vomiting, district officials said.
On Saturday evening, a class 10 student of the hostel, who complained of nausea and headache, passed away at Balasore district headquarters hospital a day after she was admitted.
Though her samples did not indicate the case of her death, five others who were admitted along with her to the district headquarter hospital were found positive for the virus.
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“We don’t know how they got infected with Japanese encephalitis. But we got the students tested after they showed all signs of encephalitis. A detailed investigation would reveal how they were infected. As pigs are the carrier it’s possible that the students had come in contact with pigs,” said Dr Mrutyunjay Mishra, additional district medical officer, Balasore district.
Meanwhile, 25 other girl students of the hostel who had similar symptoms as those with encephalitis, tested negative for the virus. However, they are being kept under close observation, according to the officials.
Japanese encephalitis is a viral brain infection that’s spread through mosquito bites. It is vector-borne in which the infected patients suffer from fever, and abdominal pain and experience recurrent vomiting. Many of the affected patients have hypoglycaemia.
In Malkangiri district of Odisha, a severe outbreak of Japanese encephalitis and acute encephalitis syndrome was reported during September to November 2016 in which 336 children were affected with 103 deaths between the age group four months to 13 years.
