E-Paper
After dengue, chikungunya scare in city
NEW DELHI: Chikungunya, apart from the mosquito-borne dengue, is on a feverish high in the Capital this year.
NEW DELHI: Chikungunya, apart from the mosquito-borne dengue, is on a feverish high in the Capital this year.
Though the number of dengue cases this year is high, hospitals across the city are receiving more patients with classic chikungunya symptoms — high-grade fever for four or five days along with severe joint pains.
Chikungunya is caused by the bite of the same aedes aegypti mosquito that causes dengue
To date, 171 cases of dengue have been reported by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) in the Delhi-NCR. Only 119 cases of dengue had been reported during the same period last year, when Delhi had seen its worst outbreak, affecting almost 16,000 people and killing 60.
“Every day I see around three to five suspected chikungunya cases in my clinic,” said Dr Suranjit Chatterjee, senior consultant of internal medicine at Indraprastha Apollo hospital. It is at least double the number of dengue cases that he has seen in his clinic, he said.
“I have hardly seen any dengue cases in my clinic, whereas, more than 50% of the fever cases show clinical symptoms of chikungunya. Around 90% of those who get the PCR assay test done, test positive for chikungunya,” said, Dr Rommel Tickoo, senior consultant of internal medicine at Max Super-Speciality Hospital, Saket.
A PCR test costs around Rs 3,500 to Rs 4,000.
“This year, we have not been able to identify the dengue strain doing the rounds because only a few positive cases have come. We are getting more number of positive chikungunya cases,” said Dr Lalit Dar, professor, department of microbiology at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).
However, the Municipal Corporations of Delhi (MCD) have so far reported only one case of chikungunya till July 30.
If a person is suffering from chikungunya, the fever subsides only after four or five days. The itchy rashes take another five days and the joint pain may persist for a week or two.
Stay updated with all top Cities including, Bengaluru, Delhi, Mumbai and more across India. Stay informed on the latest happenings in World News along with Delhi Election 2025 and Delhi Election Result 2025 Live, New Delhi Election Result Live, Kalkaji Election Result Live at Hindustan Times.
