Following a sudden rise in deaths suspected to be caused by encephalitis (Acute Encephalitis Syndrome – AES) among children and patients in various hospitals, a team from the National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune has arrived in Nagpur to investigate the cause. The three-member team comprises Dr. Vijay Bondre, Dr. Avinash Devshatwar, and Dr. Surendra Kumar. They are accompanied by state health department officers Dr. Rahul Jagtap, Dr. Premchand Kamble, and Dr. Mahendra Jagtap.
The team met officials at the Nagpur Municipal Corporation on Wednesday and later visited major hospitals including Government Medical College, Mayo, and AIIMS, as well as state and central government-run hospitals. The experts collected information about patients suffering from high fever and took samples from children who died of suspected encephalitis, along with samples of mosquitoes and animals from the Manakapura area, where several cases have been reported.
According to the municipal records, there were 27 suspected AES patients earlier. However, after detailed examination, seven of these cases were found unrelated to encephalitis, leaving 20 cases under close scrutiny. Out of these 20, two are from Nagpur city and two from Nagpur rural, making a total of four patients whose samples are now being tested at NIV Pune.
Health experts are examining whether the infection pattern among children and adults is related to Japanese Encephalitis or the Chandipura virus, which has been known to cause similar symptoms in Vidarbha before. The NIV team is conducting laboratory analyses to confirm the viral strain responsible for the deaths.
Doctors have noted a rise in patients suffering from high fever and chills, many showing symptoms like severe headache, cough, and cold. Based on the observed symptoms, experts have advised early antibiotic treatment as a precautionary measure until final lab results are available.
So far, 20 patients have been identified with suspected encephalitis in the region, with two deaths — one from Nagpur city and one from a rural area. Of the 20, eight cases are from Eastern Vidarbha, one from Gadchiroli, and one from Madhya Pradesh’s Chhindwada region. The samples collected by the NIV team will undergo detailed testing in Pune to determine the exact cause of death and viral source, officials said.
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