E-Paper
Pune reports first suspected case of scrub typhus after 18 months
Health officials in Pune district have reported the first suspected case of scrub typhus bacterial infection in a 33-year-old resident of Phursungi
Pune: Health officials in Pune district have reported the first suspected case of scrub typhus bacterial infection in a 33-year-old resident of Phursungi. The patient received treatment at two private hospitals in Pune city and was discharged on Wednesday of last week, health officials said.
Following the incident, the health department has begun surveillance in Phursungi and Uruli Devachi. However, the officials have been unable to find the source of the infection.
The patient reportedly complained of fever, nausea and body ache, among other symptoms and was admitted to a private hospital in Pune on July 24. After receiving treatment, the patient was discharged following which he was admitted to another private hospital in Rasta Peth on July 19. Due to improvement in his health, the patient was finally discharged from the hospital on July 26, the officials said.
Scrub typhus is caused by a Rickettsial bacterium called Orientia tsutsugamushi, which is transmitted to humans through the bites of infected mites called chiggers.
The symptoms of scrub typhus commonly include fever, headache, body ache, and sometimes a rash. In severe cases, the infection can lead to respiratory distress, brain and lung inflammation, kidney failure and multi-organ failure, ultimately resulting in death.
A senior officer on condition of anonymity said that two years ago, two suspected cases of scrub typhus were reported in Pune district while the instant case has been the first after a gap of one-and-a-half years.
“The surveillance and survey have been started in the area where the patient lives. A clinical examination of all six family members of the patient was carried out. However, they were not tested for the disease as they were all asymptomatic,” the official said.
Dr Abhay Tidke, additional health officer of Pune district, said that such cases are rare in Pune district and common in the Vidarbha district of Maharashtra and states such as Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala in the South; and Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Jammu and Kashmir in the North.
“There are hardly one or two such suspected cases that we come across in Pune district. The patient had no travel history. Most of the time, the migratory population is the reason behind such infection,” he said.
Dr Tidke informed that following the incident, guidelines for the prevention, management and control of the disease have already been disseminated to all the health teams. “Medical examinations of around 1,500 to 2,000 people living in the area have been carried out. A container survey of 200 houses in Phursungi and Uruli Devachi has been conducted by the health team. No other suspected cases have been found till date,” he said
