A 16-year-old boy succumbed to Dengue fever in Aurangabad, Maharashtra on Wednesday, taking the death toll to four.
The deceased, Dinesh Pawar, was under treatment at Hedgewar Hospital when he was diagnosed with dengue, The Times of India reported.
“Parents are scared when they take their children to private hospitals and doctors inform them that it is a case of dengue. Meanwhile, government authorities are just terming the cases as suspected dengue. There should be coordination between private doctors and government officials,” the TOI quoted Ayyub Patel, an activist, as saying.
According to district malaria prevention officer PN Vaishnav, he has issued letters to Hedgewar Hospital and MGM Hospital to take caution when labeling a case as dengue. “The private hospitals are using NS1 antigen test to diagnose dengue but it is not a confirmatory test. Until the sample is positive for enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (Mac-Elisa) test, dengue cannot be confirmed. The private hospitals do not send serum samples for Mac Elisa and label the case incorrectly as dengue,” he said.
AMC health department also maintains that NS1 positive case does not mean dengue positive. However, the report of Mac Elisa test may take several days to come.
Meanwhile, a meeting will be held soon in which recent dengue suspected deaths will be investigated. AMC health officer Nita Padalkar, meanwhile, has declared Nandanwan Colony, Bhavsingpura, Cidco N-8, N-11, N-12, N-3, N-4, Mill Corner, Harsul, Padegaon, Garkheda and Mayur Park as high-risk areas for dengue and said work is being carried out on war-footing to control the outbreak.
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