The Gujarat Government has deployed epidemic medical officers from various districts in Lakhpat and Abdasa talukas of Kutch where a mysterious illness has claimed 16 lives so far.
These deaths have been attributed to flu and pneumonia.
State Health Minister Rushikesh Patel and top health officers visited the affected areas on Wednesday. He tried to assure the citizens that the government is prepared to handle the outbreak.
The mysterious illness has been claiming lives since September 3.
Patel said the government has implemented several measures to control the spread of the suspected disease.
Common symptoms of the mystery disease are five to seven days of fever, muscle pain and breathing difficulty.
Forty-five teams are going house-to-house screening people. So far, 2,234 people have been screened, with 48 found to be suffering from the fever. All of them are being treated. To identify the virus involved, 20 samples have been sent to the National Institute of Virology in Pune, Patel said.
Seven villages are impacted by the outbreak, and ambulances are on standby in these areas to facilitate rapid transportation of patients to medical facilities. Patel announced that 100 isolation beds have been reserved at the GK General Hospital in Bhuj to treat patients of undiagnosed fever, free of charge.
A cardiologist from UN Mehta Heart Institute in Ahmedabad will be deputed to GK General Hospital. “We have deputed two physicians each at the Dayapar and Naliya community health centres. The patients’ samples are being analyzed at GBRC, parallel to NIV. Virtual workshops were organised on treatment protocols with doctors from Kutch and the IMA,” Patel told a section of the media.
Also Read: Luxury Vehicle Owners Use Loophole To Avoid Gujarat Road Tax
