Thiruvananthapuram: For the second day in a row, the number of patients who sought treatment for fever in the state crossed 13,000. On Thursday, 13,490 people reached hospitals with fever symptoms, of whom 163 were admitted.
On Wednesday, 13,258 people sought treatment from hospitals, of whom 129 were admitted.
A Kollam native, who was undergoing treatment for dengue, succumbed to the disease. In Malappuram, the virology report of a 13-year-old boy, who died on Monday, confirmed the H1N1 virus as the cause of his death.
In the past four days, the number of patients suffering from fever has seen a huge increase. On June 18, the state saw 4,985 people seeking treatment for fever, of whom 63 were admitted, as per official data. While Malappuram had the most number of cases (2,051), Ernakulam (35) saw the most number of patients being admitted.
As per official figures, 282 patients have displayed symptoms of dengue. Among those, 53 have been confirmed with the disease. Kollam (16) has the highest number of dengue patients at present, followed by Malappuram (14). Around seven people were diagnosed with rat fever.
A meeting was convened under the leadership of Health Minister Veena George, Local Self-Government Minister M B Rajesh and Education Minister V Sivankutty as part of strengthening the prevention of communicable diseases in the state.
Veena George said preventive measures and vigilance should be strengthened as there is a possibility of a hike in the number of fever cases, especially in the month of July.
"Hospitals in the state may not be able to accommodate critical patients if they all arrive at the same time. Hence, the departments concerned should take coordinated action to avoid such a situation," said Veena.
The minister also said influenza cases are increasing among children.
M B Rajesh said review meetings will be called once in a fortnight at the local body level, besides the district-level meetings.
Medical officers, representatives of Kudumbashree, Haritha Karma Sena, Employment Guarantee scheme etc will be part of the meeting.
"Special intervention will be made in hot spots. The monsoon cleaning drive is in progress. However, local bodies have been asked to further strengthen their cleaning activities and even observe dry days," said the minister.
