Scrub typhus cases rise in Kolkata, situation not alarming

The number of scrub typhus cases in Kolkata has risen a bit in comparison to that of last year, but the situation is “not alarming”, a senior state health department official said on Aug 1.

A few children are currently admitted at the state-run BC Roy Post Graduate Institute of Pediatric Sciences. Out of them, two are being treated at the Intensive Care Unit, he added.

Private hospitals in the city are also witnessing a slight rise in the number of patients with symptoms of the disease.

"We are getting at least five to six patients every month. Some of the cases involved several organs. At the moment, over 20 (scrub typhus) patients are admitted in our hospital," said an official of the Institute of Child Health, a private facility.

Scrub typhus is a bacterial disease that spreads to people, mainly children, through bites of infected chiggers (mite larvae). Common symptoms of the disease include fever, headache and body ache.

"We are getting reports of scrub typhus infections. Compared to last year, it appears the number of cases this year is slightly higher. The situation, however, is not alarming,” the health department official told PTI.

He, however, could not provide any figure saying data is not readily available.

The department is keeping a tab on the matter, the official said.

Veteran pediatrician and ICH Director Dr Apurbha Ghosh, however, has a different take on the rise in the number of scrub typhus cases.

"We do get cases, but I do not think there is any upsurge. The rise in the number of cases is mainly because of errors by the several laboratories conducting erroneous tests," Ghosh told PTI.

He said that people with severe illness are likely to develop organ failure and bleeding which, if left untreated, can be fatal.

Scrub Typhus cases are generally found in rural areas, primarily during the July–September period, especially in the monsoon or post-monsoon period, when there is an abundance of mite larvae.

This infection, reported high among children in the 1-14 years age group, affects organs such as the lungs, liver, kidneys and the central nervous system. It can lead to severe complications like acute respiratory distress syndrome, hepatitis as well as acute kidney injury.

(PTI)