Dengue mosquito. Image for representation.
Credit: iStock Photo
Bengaluru: Bengaluru reported its second suspected death due to dengue on Saturday.
BBMP Chief Commissioner Tushar Giri Nath said that an 11-year-old boy named Gagan, who suffered from dengue, passed away on Friday.
He explained that it was considered a suspected dengue death. "We will obtain and check all the reports and send them to the state government as soon as possible. It is a suspected case because he showed dengue symptoms. Until our audit is done, we cannot declare it (as a confirmed dengue death)," he said.
BBMP Chief Health Officer (Public Health) Dr Syed Sirajuddin Madni noted that the boy had a history of fever five days ago but his condition improved after he received medicines from a local doctor.
Gagan, who was a resident of Anjanapura 9th Block in southern Bengaluru, suffered abdominal pain on Thursday at his school and was sent home. "The next day, his family took him to a temple in Chamarajpet at 9 am. After a few hours there, he suddenly fell unconscious and suffered seizures. He was taken to a clinic in Kothanur and referred to a private hospital around 1 pm, where he was put on the ventilator," Madni told DH.
An NS1 test conducted at the hospital returned positive but an ELISA (Enzyme-linked Immunoassay) test was not conducted to confirm dengue, he added. "According to the hospital's reports, Gagan's platelet count was 80,000 platelets per microlitre. We have sent his blood sample for ELISA IgM and are awaiting the report."
According to the hospital, Gagan's differential diagnosis notes hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (brain injury due to lack of oxygen supply), dengue encephalopathy, and aspiration pneumonia.
The reports have been sent for an audit and results are expected on July 8. If confirmed, this will bring the number of dengue deaths in the city to two and in Karnataka to seven. A week ago, BBMP’s audit confirmed that a 27-year-old man from Byrasandra died due to dengue.