Jaipur: After malaria, chikungunya tightens grip over the city

Jaipur: After battling malaria, the state health department has been confronted by another equally dangerous viral fever spread by mosquitoes, chikungunya.

"The cases have been increasing steadily as we could not check the growth of mosquitoes after the monsoon this year. Most of the cases are being reported from the rural areas," said Dr CL Nawal, professor of medicine at Sawai Man Singh (SMS) medical college. I recently came across a few chikungunya patients who have become handicap due to severe reactive arthritis, he added. Chikungunya is a viral disease, spread by Ades mosquitoes, popularly known as Tiger mosquito.

"Yes, we have come across quite a few cases of chikungunya in rural areas and a few from the city as well. We have been doing anti-larval activities to control the growth of mosquito," said Dr Yatindra Singh, chief medical and health officer of Jaipur II.

According to officials, more than 200 cases of chikungunya have been reported from across Jaipur district, while state-wide the number of cases has crossed the 1,000-patient mark. Chikungunya in its severe form can become dangerous leading to life-long pain in the joints.

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"The word Chikungunya in the Makonde language means 'one that leans downward'. Its symptoms are very similar to dengue fever. Chikungunya causes reactive arthritis which causes inflammation in the cartilage bones and freezing of the joints which later causes destruction of cartilage bones," Nawal said.

Health department is also planning to increase awareness about the disease. "As the tiger mosquito bites only in the day time, one can take some precautions and easily escape the disease. We have been trying to educate people in rural areas and have also been taking measures to control the growth of mosquitoes," Singh said.

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