Congo fever death rings alarm bells across Gujarat

In what could be a major threat for the state, a confirmed case of death due to the Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) in Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation-run Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (SVP) Hospital came to light on Monday.

The deceased, a 75-year-old woman from Limbdi taluka, was admitted in SVP Hospital on August 20 after being referred from CU Shah Medical College, Surendranagar, with fever and septicaemia.

The doctors suspected it to be a case of CCHF and sent her blood samples to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune.

While the woman died the same day during treatment, the NIV report received on August 24 confirmed CCHF.

Sources in the civic body said the treating doctor and two paramedic staff who attended to the patient have been kept under observation and their blood samples have been sent to NIV to check whether they are also infected or not.

This apart, 21 people who were in close contact with the deceased have been kept under observation.

Meanwhile, health commissioner Jayanti Ravi said the state government is well-equipped to tackle the disease and several steps have been taken to contain it from spreading.

Ravi, while briefing the media on the issue, said people should be aware of the symptoms of the disease such as nausea, fever, bleeding, diarrhoea, stomach pain, and muscular pain.

She added that people having such symptoms should not wait and immediately approach the nearest hospital as the disease has a high mortality rate of 40%.

The first case of CCHF in the country was recorded in Gujarat in 2011 and since then several persons have died due to it. People who are associated with animal husbandry and slaughter have higher chances of contracting the disease, which spreads due to tick-borne virus (nairovirus) of the Bunyaviridae family.

In mid-January in 2011, a male nurse and one Ameena Momin from Ahmedabad were identified as the first cases recorded of CCHF in India. Subsequently, outbreaks were reported from different districts of Gujarat between 2012 and 2015. Most outbreaks were recorded from in Ahmedabad, Amreli, Patan, Surendranagar, Kutch and Aravalli.

On February 2, 2016, Suresh Gamara, 28, died of Congo fever in Ahmedabad. The Dhandhuka resident was treated at a private hospital before being shifted to Civil Hospital where he succumbed. He was the first victim of the disease in the city.