Kerala records 268 dengue cases in 2010

Thiruvananthapuram, March 18 : Nearly 270 cases of dengue have been reported in Kerala this year, catching the authorities unaware as the mosquito-borne disease usually spreads during the monsoon.

According to the latest report from the Kerala health department, the state capital has accounted for 215 of the 268 dengue cases that have been reported in state-run hospitals, while the figure is expected to higher because there is no compilation of records from the numerous private hospitals in the state.

Ernakulam has reported 21 cases while the remaining 12 districts have reported 32 cases between them.

Authorities are surprised as the fever has arrived months before the monsoon, when the density of mosquitoes multiplies at a rapid pace.

Speaking to IANS, Thomas Mathew, who heads the department of community medicine at the Thiruvananthapuram Medical College, said that a recent study showed that 75 per cent of the areas that have reported the fever face water shortages.

"The main reason for this is that all these areas which reported a high rate of dengue cases face a serious water shortage. There are areas under the Thiruvananthapuram corporation where water comes only once a week and hence people are forced to store water and it is here that mosquitoes breed," Mathew said.

"The perception that dengue is associated with the rains is wrong because the National Institute of Communicable Diseases has in a study pointed out that it is endemic in nature," he added.

Health Minister P.K. Sreemathi Tuesday called a high-level meeting to take stock of the situation.

The meeting decided to form a joint coordination committee of various departments and to launch a campaign to spread awareness among the people, officials said.