As the national Capital sees no sign of let-up in chikungunya and dengue spread, health officials are of the view that this is one of the worst health crisis in the city in a decade. So far, the two vector-borne diseases have claimed 33 lives and infected over 3,000 people.
With two more fatalities reported at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital following complications triggered by chikungunya, death toll from the vector-borne disease has risen to 15 in the Capital. Over 1,800 people were infected by chikungunya virus so far.
A senior doctor at the hospital told The Pioneer on Saturday that two elderly patients died of chikungunya complications in the last two days. Both the patients had associated with co-morbid conditions, he added.
Dr Atul Kakar, Vice Chairman of Internal Medicine at Sir Gangaram Hospital, said, “One patient died on Thursday, while the other late night on Friday.”
Till now, at least 18 people succumbed to dengue and about 1,100 are infected with the disease.
AIIMS laboratory only has recorded more than 1,500 chikungyuna cases till Friday, Dr lalit Dar, Professor of Microbiology at AIIMS said.
Safdarjung Hospital has also witnessed 692 positive chikungyuna cases and 360 dengue cases with five deaths, said Dr AK Rai, Medical Superintendent of Safdarjung Hospital.
Out of the 15 deaths, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital has reported seven deaths — the highest in any hospital in the city, followed by the Apollo Hospital with five, while AIIMS, Hindu Rao Hospital and PSRI recorded one death each.
Gulab Chand Gupta (70) from lajpat Nagar in south Delhi, died on September 12, a family member said on Friday. “He was admitted at Pushpawati Singhania Research Institute (PSRI) in south Delhi on September 7 and succumbed to chikungunya complications on September 12. His medical report says he died of acute febrile illness with septic shock and multi-organ failure,” said his son-in-law Santosh Mangal.
The Delhi Government had announced the chikungunya as a noticeable dangerous disease. The Centre had sought a detailed report from the Delhi Government on deaths due to chikungunya and dengue, including medical history of the deceased.
“We have asked for a detailed report on the deaths due to the vector-borne diseases in the city. Also, we have sought medical history of the deceased, whether they had any co-morbid conditions,” Union Health Minister JP Nadda said.
The Delhi Government has asked all the private hospitals not to release data on vector-borne disease cases “directly to the press”, which may “create panic”. Doctors say that chikungunya is not a life-threatening disease in general, but in rare cases leads to complications that prove fatal, especially in children and elderly persons.