More than a lakh people in seven districts of Chhattisgarh are suffering from sickle-cell disease, out of which 80 to 90 per cent are children of 3 to 15 years.
In view of the increasing number of sickling patients, the State Government has accorded sanction for the establishment of a sickle-cell institute costing Rs2 crore from the budget for the year 2013-14. In the institute to be established in the new capital, the sickle-cell patients will get the facilities of blood transfusion and bone-marrow transfer.
The biochemistry department of Raipur medical college, with the grant given by the state government, has been operating the sickle-cell screening project from September 2007. Under the project, sickle-cell in school going children of 3 to 15 years was being identified.
So far, the biochemistry department had organised sickle-cell testing camps in the schools of Raipur, Balodabazar, Gariaband, Mahasamund, Durg, Balod and Bemethra. Testing of 10,15,352 people, including students and villagers, has been done in these camps, out of which 1,00,365 people were found affected with the sickle-cell disease.
On the occasion of World Sickle-Cell Day, on Wednesday, by organising sickle-cell camps in Kawardha and Korea district, the identification of sickling patients has been stared.
District-wise number of sickle-cell patients
In the sickle-cell screening, 5,15,042 people from Raipur, Balodabazar and Gariaband districts were examined, in which 1,306 seriously affected persons and 49,322 sickle-cell affected were found.
Out of the total 1,54,198 people examined in Mahasamund district, 713 seriously ill and 18,290 sickle-cell affected were found. Similarly, in the screening conducted on 3,46,112 people in Durg, Balod and Bemethra districts, 771 serious and 29,963 sickle-cell affected were found.
No sickle-cell screening in other districts
As there were no facility for screening sickle-cell patients in the hospitals and primary health and community centres in other districts, the biochemistry department of Raipur medical college has been conducting sickle-cell screening camps and identifying the patients in each district since last 7 years. In the camps the sickle-cell affected patients have been given cards by which they may get free medical treatment and blood transfusion facility.
Sickle-cell affected can live normal life: Dr Patra Biochemistry departmental head Dr BK Patra said that sickle-cell disease has been found among some special caste. It is a genetic disease. Sickle-cell holders should not marry among themselves, as their generation will be affected with the disease. The sickle-cell holder can live a normal life by taking regular treatment, he added.
Treatment after blood transfusion: Dr Khodiyar Associate professor Biochemistry department Dr PK Khodiyar said that the treatment of sickle-cell affected could be possible with bone-marrow transfer. But it is a costliest treatment.
At present bone-marrow transfer has been done in big cities. After the establishment of Sickle-cell Institute bone-marrow transfer can be started here also. Besides, after blood transfusion the patient remain healthy up to three months only. After that they should be administered blood at times, he added.