PANAJI: Three people were recently detected with both Covid-19 and dengue simultaneously, and have been cured of both these ailments since then.
“As instructed, we have informed the Central government about the cases. All three had tested positive for Covid-19 in the RTPCR test and for dengue in the MAC-ELISA,” chief medical officer-in-charge of the national vector borne disease control programme (NVBDCP) in Goa, Dr Kalpana Mahatme, said.
Mahatme said that health centres have been instructed that for every case of fever reported, they have to rule out malaria and dengue. The three cases were detected in that process. One case each was detected in Porvorim, Calangute and South Goa.
Meanwhile, the directorate of health services has strengthened its efforts to detect dengue cases. Goa sees an annual increase in dengue cases from June onwards, even as malaria cases have reduced drastically. “Over the last few years, we have been seeing more dengue cases between June and August. The trend so far has not been very different,” she said.
So far this year, she said, they have found dengue cases in just one new area, under the jurisdiction of Casarvarnem. The area has two big ongoing infrastructure projects, one being the construction of an Ayush hospital.
“The cases are being detected as reverse migration has started. After a couple labourers at the Ayush hospital site tested positive for dengue, we posted an inspector there to monitor the situation. Things are better now,” she said.
Till June-end, 165 dengue cases were detected, of which 48 were reported last month.
Goa reported a huge surge in dengue cases in 2019 with 726 infections. A large number of cases were reported from Vasco, Panaji and Candolim. In 2020, as many as 376 cases were detected. Mahatme said she expects the number to be somewhat similar as the trend has not changed.
Since 2017, Goa has witnessed a huge drop in malaria infections. From 653 cases that year, it came down to 102 cases in 2020. The drop has been on account of the rigorous drive implemented for over a decade that saw a surge in malaria cases, majority of which were reported from construction sites employing migrant labourers.
“Now that we have reached an elimination stage for malaria, we don’t want to waste the efforts put in to get the state to where it is today,” Mahatme said.
She said their people should ensure that labourers coming from other states are screened for malaria and dengue.
