13-yr-old is first lepto victim this year

With the 10-day incubation period for leptospirosis coming to an end, the city reported its first death this year due to leptospirosis when a 13-year-old boy from Nagpada died at Nair Hospital on Tuesday morning. “The patient was admitted to the hospital at 2.30 pm on Monday in a critical condition. He was suffering from Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome and had to be put on ventilator immediately,” said Dr Sanjay Oak, dean of the hospital.

Another death due to ‘mixed malaria’ was reported from Nair Hospital, taking the toll of deaths due to the mosquito-borne disease this monsoon to six. BMC health officials admitted that ‘mixed malaria’ was a cause for concern. “It could be a relapse of a previously harbouring vivax malarial infection or two separate infections, one vivax and the other falciparum,” explained Dr Oak.

Worried about the increasing incidents of malaria in the city this monsoon, the BMC has included it in its list of notifiable diseases, along with other monsoon-related diseases such as leptospirosis, dengue, cholera and gastroenteritis. “Thirty-five cases of malaria were reported from private hospitals in the city in the last 24 hours,” said Dr Neera Kewalramani, deputy executive health officer.

“Malaria cases are particularly prevalent in south and central suburbs,” said Dr Jayaraj Thanekar, BMC executive health officer. But such cases and deaths have been less than that of last year. “Every fever needs to be investigated as it could be serious. We are admitting patients suffering from fever to rule out that it is not dengue or leptospirosis.”