A ProMED-mail post
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International Society for Infectious Diseases
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Date: Thu 21 Apr 2011
Source: The Times of India [edited]
<http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Rabies-kills-15-in-Chennai-corporation-in-denial/articleshow/8042206.cms>
Rabies kills 15 in Chennai, corporation in denial
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The Chennai Corporation has hidden information on a serial killer.
Rabies, which has no effective treatment, has killed 15 people in the
city in the last 4 months.
The corporation has contributed to the problem by withholding
information about rabies deaths to agencies involved in fighting the
disease. The civic body has also not reported the 12 deaths in 2010
and 13 deaths in 2009.
Experts say that if the corporation had reported the deaths, animal
birth control and vaccination programmes could have been strengthened
for stray dogs in the suburbs. "We would have strengthened awareness
campaigns that would encourage people to take the vaccines after they
are bitten by an animal. These vaccines are available free at all
government and corporation hospitals," said the director of public
health Dr RT Porkai Pandian.
The rabies deaths occurred in the government hospitals in the city
and the death certificates were issued by the corporation. But the
civic body did not report the deaths to the state health department.
As a result, Chennai city's data on rabies death showed zero for the
last few years at the national level. In 2009, Tamil Nadu recorded 3
deaths against 263 across the country and in 2010 they recorded 2
deaths against 162 nationally (source: National Health Profile 2010).
The 25 rabies deaths in the city in the last 2 years went unreported.
Chennai Corporation says that they did not inform the state health
department as the victims weren't residents of Chennai. "People who
died in 2009 and 2010 lived in the suburban areas, where there is no
good vaccination programme for stray dogs. In effect, we have had only
2 cases this year," said Deputy commissioner of health Ashish Kumar.
But health care professionals find the corporation's defense "lame
and irresponsible." They say that the corporation's action is wrong in
terms of procedure and medical practice.
"It's alarming that Chennai has so many cases," said Porkai Pandian.
"If they register a rabies death in the city, no matter where the
victim belongs to, it's a death the civic body should own up," he
said. Rabies, a viral disease that is transmitted to humans from
animals, leads to death in all cases. It spreads when the infected
saliva enters the body through a bite.
Stray dogs affected with rabies in one area can quickly spread the
virus to other animals, experts say. "The virus has no borders," they
say, and add that a dog with rabies in Alandur can spread the
infection to those in neighbouring Guindy.
Non-governmental agencies (NGOs) involved in the animal birth control
programme say that though Chennai started its rabies prevention
programme much ahead of many other cities, it has a long way to go.
The city has outsourced the stray dog animal birth control and
vaccination programme to 3 NGOs. The dogs are sterilised and the
anti-rabies injection is given. But this vaccine is valid only for a
year and there is no guarantee of follow-up vaccinations. The last
stray dog census was done in 2003.
