MF AHMAD
Daltonganj, Feb 7: Around 40 cases of measles have been found in Majhiaon block in the Garhwa district.
The Garhwa district reproductive and child health officer Dr Sandhya Topno has confirmed it intimating to Lagatar24.com that 40 cases of measles have been identified in Majhiaon and every medical assistance will be made available to them.
She said there are cases of pertussis (whooping cough) also as she said, “I had one such case of pertussis in a child whose samples of a swab of nose and throat along with blood have been taken and sent to Kolkata based lab having accreditation to the WHO.”
Dr Topno urged the families not to hide any episode of either measles or pertussis as government hospitals and community health centres are committed to providing necessary medical backup.
WHO medical surveillance officer in Palamu Dr Mirtunjay Singh has alerted health officials of Palamu, Garhwa and Latehar to be ‘up and doing’ against measles and pertussis as incidences of both are being reported now in Palamu and Garhwa districts so far while Latehar district till date has no report of such incidence.
Lagatar24.com correspondent spoke to WHO medical surveillance officer Dr Singh to know the rate of incidence of this two measles and pertussis.
Dr Singh said “Last year we had collected 28 or 29 samples of which 6 were found positive for pertussis in Garhwa and Palamu. Similarly, there was an equal number of positive cases of measles also.”
“Five weeks have already gone off this year and we have already five suspected cases of pertussis which means there is one case of pertussis a week,” cautioned this WHO medical surveillance officer.
WHO medical surveillance officer said it’s a wake-up call for the measles and pertussis around in Palamu and Garhwa districts.
The confirmation of pertussis takes time as samples of nasopharyngeal swabs and blood are to be sent to Kolkata and test reports come after a week or so Dr Singh said.
For measles, a test for its confirmation is available at the RIMS Ranchi but if samples of measles affected person have been collected within seven days of the onset of the measles infection swab and urine test will be a confirmatory test but beyond seven days blood samples have to be tested also in addition to swab test and urine test.
Sources said the WHO warning against measles and pertussis has come at such a time when the contractual ANMs and other paramedics of the NRHM are on a state-wide strike over the last three weeks or so affecting healthcare services most adversely.
Lagatar24.com spoke to a cross-section of families having bouts of one of these two ailments wherein the families said, “Children OPD in the government hospitals are crowded. Once we are there with measles-ridden kids, parents of other children make faces at us. We feel guilty for having our kids down with measles. We then prefer seeing to child specialist outside. It is costlier but here we are not made to feel guilty for the sickness of our kids having measles or whooping cough.”
Parents have demanded a separate OPD for patients having measles and pertussis complaints.
To know what a child specialist says about the two ailments, a noted child specialist DR Gaurav Vishal in Daltonganj was contacted to know his advice.
Dr Vishal said, “The onset of measles and pertussis is more on those children who have missed their booster doses of the vaccination. I advise their parents to get their children booster doses without fail.”
He added that children in the homes who are yet to be vaccinated must get jabbed without any delay.
“Measles and pertussis are around. We are getting cases of both ailments. There are lab-proven cases of pertussis. It has to be contained with parents’ awareness and cooperation,” he added.
About measles, Dr Vishal said, “It’s a viral infection. Symptomatic treatment is available. Those having measles be segregated from others in the family. There is no reason to panic but at the same time there is no room for any laxity of health issues as well.”
Notably, pertussis is a severe bacterial infection causing enough breathing distress to a person who even vomits during the coughing and hence all precaution has to be taken so that the infection does not precipitate any more, said Dr Vishal.
