Dengue cases in Mumbai rose marginally in first 15 days of October over last month
Number of suspected dengue cases reported between October 1 and 15 rose by almost 28% as compared to those reported during the same time frame in September, revealed data provided by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC)’s health department.
While 1,970 suspected dengue cases were reported between October 1 and 15, a total of 1,536 cases were reported in the first 15 days of September. Between October 1 and 15, there were 109 confirmed cases of dengue while during the same time frame in September, there were 105 confirmed cases of dengue.
Dr Harshad Limaye, consultant, Internal Medicine, Nanavati Super Specialty Hospital, said, “With the end of monsoon and rise in temperature, the city will witness a gradual drop in monsoon diseases,” said Dr Limaye.
Data also revealed that 240 cases of malaria, 18 cases of leptospirosis, 45 cases of hepatitis, three cases of H1N1 and 172 cases of gastroenteritis have been recorded in the civic hospitals till October 15.
According to Dr Padmaja Keskar, executive health officer, public health department, said, “Through different means, we are trying to raise awareness among people about the symptoms. We are doing daily disease surveillance, which is helping to diagnose patients at an early stage of the disease.”
Dr Om Shrivastava, an expert on infectious diseases, said that a change in the temperature provides a suitable environment for viruses to thrive. “Whenever there is a sudden change in the environment, micro-organisms get a suitable ground to reproduce,” said Dr Shrivastava.
