BHOPAL: Nine more cases of dengue were diagnosed in the state capital on Tuesday. The total number of cases this season is about 275. The new cases, come at a time when the Union ministry of health and family welfare indicated prevalence of serotype II in Madhya Pradesh. However, district malaria officer (DMO) told TOI that serotype I is prevalent in Bhopal.
Knowledge of the serotype is linked to understanding secondary infections. These are associated with elevated risks of severe disease outcomes, according to experts.
Dengue infection is caused chiefly by four viruses known as serotypes – DEN-1, DEN-2, DEN-3 and DEN-4. According to experts, DEN-2 virus is the most threatening of the four viruses. A four-year cyclical spurt in dengue cases is anticipated by some epidemiologists.
“For a common person, the most important thing, once infected with dengue is to avoid the second bite. A second bite can lead to hospitalisation and require more accelerated treatment protocols. The ideal way is to use a mosquito net and avoid further risk,” said a health department doctor, who is credited with controlling the vector-borne outbreak.
Bhopal, like other districts of the state, had seen a spike in dengue cases in 2018 and 2019. The lockdown and pandemic kept dengue under control in 2020.
According to reports, in light of the forthcoming festival season, in Delhi a high-level review meeting on the dengue situation took note of the high-test positivity and ordered the states to prevent mass gatherings. It includes Madhya Pradesh along with Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Telangana are among the states reporting dengue cases of serotype II.
When contacted, NVDSP did not respond on deployment of rapid response teams for prompt investigation, fever surveys, vector control measures and contact tracing apart from ensuring adequate stocks of blood platelets and other components in blood banks.
First, primary and secondary infections are distinguishable based on their antibody responses. The ability of all DENV serotypes to utilise pre-existing heterotypic Flavivirus antibody to enhance infection unique feature of dengue. This distinguishes it from all other flaviviruses, according to experts
