The Chandipura virus has killed a four-year-old girl in Gujarat, a health department official said on Wednesday while confirming the first such fatality in the state.
As many as 14 other patients are suspected to have died of the infection in the state, which has so far reported 29 cases of the virus that causes fever, with symptoms similar to flu, and acute encephalitis (inflammation of the brain).
"The sample of a four-year-old girl from Aravalli district's Mota Kanthariya village, who died at the civil hospital at Himatnagar in Sabarkantha district, has tested positive for the Chandipura virus. This was the first death due to the Chandipura virus infection in the state," the news agency PTI quoted Sabarkantha Chief District Health Officer (CDHO) Raj Sutariya as saying.
A patient from Rajasthan's Udaipur, who was being treated at a state hospital, has also died of suspected Chandipura virus.
The suspected deaths have been reported from Sabarkantha (two), Aravalli (two), Mahisagar (one), Mehsana (one), Rajkot (two), Surendranagar (one), Ahmedabad (one), Morbi (two) and GMC (one) districts.
The cases have also been reported from Kheda, Gandhinagar, Panchmahaland Jamnagar districts.
Another patient from Rajasthan's Udaipur and one from Madhya Pradesh's Dhar have also been treated in the state hospitals, officials said.
What Is Chandipura Virus
Chandipura virus is a type of arbovirus that is a member of the vesicular virus genus of the Rhabdoviridae family.
It is transmitted primarily through phlebotomine sandflies and sometimes through ticks and mosquitoes.
Children are reportedly more prone to getting infected with this virus.
It was first identified in India in 1965 in Chandipura village in Maharashtra.
Chandipura Virus Symptoms
Infection with the Chandipura virus typically begins with a sudden high fever.
It is followed by severe headaches, vomiting, convulsions, and altered mental status, according to reports.
Rapid progression can lead to encephalitis, characterised by inflammation of the brain, leading to coma or death if not treated promptly.
(With agency inputs)
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