| Author: Gitolekha 06 Nov 2008 | Member Level: Gold | Rating:  Points: 3 |
Not a single comment till now? C'mon guys! Your inputs might help to increase awareness amongst people. Especially the doctors in ISC can give us details on the cause, preventions, symptoms and other such details.
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| Author: Dr.Sanjeev(Sandy) 06 Nov 2008 | Member Level: Platinum | Rating: Points: 3 |
Hi Gitolekha
To know about Dengue fever its treatment and prevention see
http://www.indiastudychannel.com/resources/41533-How-To-Diagnose-Prevent-Dengue-Fever.aspx
Fr malaria I will be posting soon an informative resource.
Dr. Sanjeev
Site coordinator, Indiastudychannel.com
Health is Wealth
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| Author: drsachin 06 Nov 2008 | Member Level: Diamond | Rating: Points: 6 |
One has to be careful about these 2 diseases.
Malaria is spread from mosquito bite.Stagnant water gives a breeding site for mosquitoes.Proper cleanliness , use of drugs to kill mosquitoes (various sprays are available) is very important.Use of mosquito repellants helps in decreasing chances of mosquito bites.
Malaria manifests as -fever with chills.Patient may have headache,bodyache,malaise & other constitutional symptoms.One has to do peripheral blood smear ideally when one has fever to diagnose malarial parasite-plasmodium vivax
Plasmodium falciparum is a dangerous species.Cerebral malaria is a serious complication of disease.This is the major cause of mortality
Chloroquine is the traditional drug used in treatment.The dosage is as follows-Initially 4 tablets stat,then 2 tab after 6 hours.Then 1 tab 2 times a day for next 2 days.So a course of 10 tab total.This tab can cause gastritis
But resistant forms to chloroquine are known.In such cases,physician has to use other drugs.All this Rx has to be done under supervision of a qualified physician
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| Author: Rajesh Kumar 06 Nov 2008 | Member Level: Diamond | Rating: Points: 1 |
Chloroquine psychosis is another complication, but it is a must drug, nausea and vomitting is most common occurance, so take anti emetic drug before taking chloroquine.
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| Author: drsachin 06 Nov 2008 | Member Level: Diamond | Rating: Points: 6 |
Malaria can lead to
1.Coma
2.Renal (kidney)failure
3.Hepatospleenomegaly
4.Cerebral ischemia
5.Anaemia due to hemolysis
6.Hemoglobinuria
7.Convulsions-in layman's language known as fits
Common species which cause malaria -
P. falciparum,
P. malariae,
P. ovale,
P. vivax
Chloroquine resistant P.Falciparum is the one which is really dangerous form of malaria
Various other drugs used in Rx are
Quinine
Artemether-lumafantrine
Artemether-mefloquine
Artesunate-mefloquine
Sulfa with pyrimethamine
Doxycycline
Prevention
1. Its extremely important to use mosquito nets,repellants,etc to reduce chances of mosquito bites.
2.Avoid water getting stagnated
3.One can use larvicidal fish known as "gambusia" fish in ponds,stagnant water
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| Author: drsachin 06 Nov 2008 | Member Level: Diamond | Rating: Points: 4 |
National malaria eradication programme ( NMEP) is implemented by Govt to reduce the % of this disease.Health care workers in primary health centres are trained to check peripheral blood smears & tab chloroquine are freely available at Govt hospitals.
Development of vaccine for malaria- efforts are going on & scientists will be able to develop it in future
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| Author: Gitolekha 11 Nov 2008 | Member Level: Gold | Rating: Points: 6 |
Hi friends,
Thanks to all of you for your inputs,I can also share some inputs on the topic:
Malaria and dengue fever, both diseases which are transmitted by mosquitoes, are increasing in Kolkata. Unconfirmed news sources
have reported that as many as 20% of the city's residents are suffering from malaria, dengue or an undiagnosed fever. Around
26,000 cases of malaria have been officially reported in Kolkata this year. More than eighty dengue cases have been confirmed.
The diseases are widespread across the city. Several people have died. Local health authorities have acted to raise awareness of these mosquito-borne diseases in the community. Kolkata, India’s third largest city, reported over 31,000 cases of malaria in 2007.
Malaria is a serious disease caused by one of four species of a parasite called Plasmodium. It is transmitted by mosquitoes that bite at night, during the hours between dusk and dawn. Once a patient has been exposed to malaria, it can take as little as six days or as long as one year to develop symptoms. These can be episodic and may include fever, chills, headache, muscle aches, fatigue, vomiting, diarrhea and jaundice. If not promptly treated, malaria caused by Plasmodium falciparum can be fatal.
Dengue or "break-bone" fever is a viral disease found in tropical and sub-tropical areas. It is transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito. This insect bites during the day and is often found in and around human habitation. Symptoms of dengue include high fever, severe headache, cough, and joint and muscle pain. A rash often follows these symptoms. The acute illness can last up to ten days, and complete recovery can take two to four weeks.
Occasionally, a potentially fatal form of dengue called dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) occurs. DHF usually occurs in patients who have previously had dengue fever, and its fatality rate is about 5 percent.
There is no vaccine to prevent Dengue fever. Anti-malarial medication may be considered. Malaria in India is resistant to Chloroquine. In addition, it is important to prevent mosquito bites. Prevent mosquito bites while at outdoors:
Wear light-colored clothing that covers most of the body (long sleeves and long pants).
Use insect repellent that contains DEET. Follow the manufacturer's instructions, and reapply after swimming or excessive sweating.
Due to airport restrictions regarding flying with liquids, consider bringing solid repellent or ensure that your liquid/cream repellant is in a container smaller than 100 ml/3 oz.
Prevent mosquito bites while you are indoors or asleep:
Make sure that there is fly-wire on the windows.
Use "knock-down" insect spray to kill mosquitoes in your room.
Use mosquito coils or electric insecticide vaporizers if mosquitoes can get into your room.
Note that air-conditioning also repels mosquitoes.
Consider using a bed nets.
If anyone else have some more information on how to prevent, please share it with us.
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| Author: drsachin 11 Nov 2008 | Member Level: Diamond | Rating: Points: 2 |
Both these diseases can be very dangerous if neglected.So medical consultations should be sought at the earliest to avoid complications .
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| Author: Gitolekha 11 Nov 2008 | Member Level: Gold | Rating: Points: 3 |
Thank you drsachin for sharing such useful information with us for preventing the outbreak.Are there any symptoms through which we can suspect the disease before going for medical tests? Especially for Dengue?
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| Author: drsachin 11 Nov 2008 | Member Level: Diamond | Rating: Points: 7 |
Dengue causes severe headache,backache,bodyache.It is called as "bone breaking fever".
rash is characteristically bright red petechia and appears first on the lower limbs and the chest
There may be gastritis with associated abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting or diarrhea.
Dengue hemorrhagic fever -DHF-can manifest as bleeding tendencies,thrombocytopenia. Thrombocytopenia is a condition in which platelet counts are low.Platelets play an important role in blood clotting.As clotting gets impaired,bleeding occurs through various body tissues/organs.Platelet transfusion may need rarely in situations when count falls below 20,ooo without bleeding or below 50,000 with bleeding
DHF can lead to dengue shock syndrome
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| Author: Radharani Munnaluri 20 Nov 2008 | Member Level: Diamond | Rating: Points: 3 |
Very good question asked and also good responses especially from the doctors.The government should also take necessary steps to avoid the spread of such diseases.
Regards,
Radharani.
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| Author: drsachin 20 Nov 2008 | Member Level: Diamond | Rating: Points: 2 |
Malaria & other mosquito -born diseases are very common in developing countries like India,Pakistan,Bangladesh,African countries
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| Author: drsachin 04 Dec 2008 | Member Level: Diamond | Rating: Points: 1 |
NMEP- National Malaria Eradication Programme in India is really a good programme & we are trying to reduce malaria patients
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