Eastern UP`s encephalitis menace
Gorakhpur and neighbouring districts in Uttar Pradesh are witnessing acute encephalitis syndrome. Caused by a virus, it can spread easily through food and water. The virus can affect all the organs of the body. k p kushwaha, senior paediatrician, Baba Raghav Das Medical College, Nehru Hospital, Gorakhpur, speaks to vibha varshney on the state of affairs there.
Current status:
We have had around 1,600 patients since January. There has been a surge in their numbers since August. We had cases last year too and blood samples were sent to the National Institute of Virology, Pune. The results showed it was an enterovirus