Sign In
Learn bits
Health & Medicine
Mahesh

17/07/24 11:42 AM IST

Chandipura virus infection in Gujarat

In News
  • The Gujarat government recently said that six children have died of suspected Chandipura virus (CHPV) infection in the state since July 10.
About CHPV
  • CHPV is a virus of the Rhabdoviridae family, which also includes other members such as the lyssavirus that causes rabies.
  • Several species of sandflies like Phlebotomine sandflies and Phlebotomus papatasi, and some mosquito species such as Aedes aegypti (which is also the vector for dengue) are considered vectors of CHPV.
  • The virus resides in the salivary gland of these insects, and can be transmitted to humans or other vertebrates like domestic animals through bites.
  • The infection caused by the virus can then reach the central nervous system which can lead to encephalitis — inflammation of the active tissues of the brain.
Symptoms
  • The CHPV infection presents initially with flu-like symptoms such as acute onset of fever, body ache, and headache.
  • It may then progress to altered sensorium or seizures and encephalitis.
  • Retrospective studies from India have also reported other symptoms such as respiratory distress, bleeding tendencies, or anaemia.
  • The infection often progresses rapidly after encephalitis, which may then lead to mortality within 24-48 hours of hospitalisation, according to studies.
  • Susceptibility has largely remained limited to children below 15 years
  • The infection can only be symptomatically managed as currently there is no specific antiretroviral therapy or vaccine available for treatment.
  • As a result, it becomes crucial to manage brain inflammation to prevent mortality.
  • Disease progression can be as rapid as a patient reporting high fever in the morning, and their kidneys or liver being affected by the evening.
  • This makes it harder to manage the symptoms, according to several paediatricians.
Worst affected regions in India
  • The CHPV infection was first isolated in 1965 while investigating a dengue/chikungunya outbreak in Maharashtra.
  • However, one of the most significant outbreaks of the disease in India was seen in 2003-04 in states such as Maharashtra, northern Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh, with the three states reporting more than 300 deaths of children.
  • Gujarat, during the 2004 outbreak, saw a case fatality rate (CFR) of around 78% while CFR in Andhra Pradesh, during the 2003 outbreak, was pegged at around 55%.
  • The infection has largely remained endemic to the central part of India, where the population of CHPV infection-spreading sandflies and mosquitoes is higher.
  • The outbreaks are often reported in rural, tribal and peripheral areas, and the same may have a correlation with the prevalence of sandflies in these areas.
  • There is also a seasonal aspect to the infection where outbreaks are reported more when the sandflies’ population increases.
  • Sandflies usually do not fly at a height more than 3 feet from the ground but this time during surveillance, sandflies have been found on terraces and higher heights.
  • Additionally, of the six suspected deaths so far, two presented with brain haemorrhages.

More Related Current Affairs View All

05 Mar

First-ever comprehensive survey of India’s river dolphins

'Prime Minister Narendra Modi released the results of the first-ever comprehensive population estimation of riverine dolphins – Gangetic and Indus dolphins – done in In

Read More

05 Mar

Arresting women at night

'The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court in Deepa versus S. Vijayalakshmi and Others ruled that the legal provision in the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, which

Read More

05 Mar

Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023

'The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) looking to wrap up public consultations on the draft Rules for the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 by Mar

Read More

India’s First Ai-Driven Magazine Generator

Generate Your Custom Current Affairs Magazine using our AI in just 3 steps