Encephalitis Outbreak: Despite Bihar Govt's Claim, Victims' Parents Allege No Medical Assistance, No ORS & Power Cuts in Hospital
Despite the state government promising a slew of measures to help people in the wake of AES outbreak, parents of the affected kids are anguished over the lack of facilities in hospitals, where the kids were admitted.
Patna, June 19: The death toll due to the deadly Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) in Bihar has jumped to 112 on Wednesday. Amid the fear and panic that has gripped Muzaffarpur after the fresh death cases, parents of the affected children, came out in large numbers, highlighting the discrepancies of the Bihar government. Despite the state government promising a slew of measures to help people in the wake of AES outbreak, parents of the affected kids are anguished over the lack of facilities in hospitals, where the kids were admitted. Can Lychees Be Poisonous? Litchis Linked to Encephalitis Deaths in Muzaffarpur – How to Eat This Fruit Safely.
On Monday, with fresh cases of the disease, the death toll hit 112. The disease has affected children belonging to age group of 1-10. It must be noted that maximum casualties have been reported from Sri Krishna Medical College and Hospital (SKMCH) in Muzaffarpur. According to a tweet by ANI, parents of kids admitted at SKMCH said, there was no guidance and no ORS for the suffering kids. "No one has told us anything about or given us ORS. We don't know the symptoms of AES. Our children are burning with fever since 4-5 days. Doctor asked us to get medicines for them & said they'll admit them if fever doesn't go down after that. We don't have money", they said. All About the Symptoms, Causes, Treatment and Prevention of Encephalitis.
Here's the tweet:
Several other families at Sri Krishna Medical College and Hospital (SKMCH) in Muzaffarpur complain of frequent power cuts. "There are frequent power cuts here. There is no alternate arrangement, we are using handheld fans. Children are crying due to heat", they said. Officials of the Union health department had visited the district over the weekend and clarified that AES was an umbrella of symptoms, unlike a viral infection like Japanese encephalitis.
The symptoms of AES include high fever, convulsions, and extremely-low blood-sugar level. The SKMCH and a private hospital in the city continue to receive fresh cases with symptoms akin to AES. The two hospitals are reverberating with the cries and wails of helpless parents as children continue to die of AES.
Reports inform that the main factor behind triggering the syndrome is malnutrition. Apart from the other reasons of the spread of the disease, the lychee fruit grown in Muzaffarpur is reported to contain a toxin that can cause a drop in blood-sugar levels if consumed by a malnourished child.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 19, 2019 01:09 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).