A 60-year-old woman dies of Kyasanur forest disease also known as monkey fever in the Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka, raising the death toll due to the virus to four.
The woman is from Koorlakai village in Siddapur taluk. She was diagnosed with monkey fever 20 days ago and suffered the symptoms of high fever. She was treated for three days at Meggan Hospital in Shivamogga and she passed away on Sunday night.
A senior health official said that one more death due to KFD was reported Sunday night. A 60-year-old woman died in Shivamogga. She was admitted to the ICU for the past 20 days and was on ventilator support. She had multiple issues. The total death toll in the state due to this virus has now reached four.
The cases of monkey fever have risen to 43, in Siddapur Taluk alone. The state has reported 103 active monkey fever cases and has registered three deaths, one each in Chikkmagaluru, Uttara Kannada, and Shivamogga districts.
Officials said that Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao, earlier this month held a high-level meeting with legislators and officers of the districts which reported the outbreak of the disease. The state government is also in talks with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) to bring out an effectual vaccination. They also said that the authorities are carrying out door-to-door awareness programs about the safeguards to be taken. Those living around the forest area are required to be more careful as they have a high chance of contracting the disease.
Kyasanur Forest Disease, also referred to as monkey fever, is a tick-borne viral hemorrhagic disease. Which can be fatal to both humans and other primates. The Kyasanur forest disease virus is a member of the tick-borne encephalitis. The symptoms of KFD begin abruptly with chills, fever, and headache. After the onset of initial symptoms, severe muscle pain with vomiting, gastrointestinal symptoms, and bleeding problems may develop after three to four days.
References:
1. https://monkeyfeverrisk.ceh.ac.uk/what-kfd
(Input from various sources)
(Rehash/Lavanya Beeraboina/MSM)