Kathmandu, September 17

A-53-year-old woman from Lele VDC of Lalitpur district, who was admitted to Sukraraj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital, has been tested positive for dengue virus.

Doctors at the hospital said the woman admitted to the hospital for treatment of high fever tested   positive for dengue. “We have sent blood samples to the National Public Health Laboratory for further confirmation,” Dr Sher Bahadur Pun, a virologist at STIDH, said. He informed that four other patients admitted to the hospital some three weeks ago, had also been tested positive for the disease. He, however, said that he was not aware about the origin of those patients.

According to Dr Pun, the woman was suffering from high fever and complained of severe headache, joint and muscle pain and vomiting at the time she was brought to the hospital. “All her symptoms matched with those of dengue patients,” he said, adding that the infection was confirmed after laboratory examination.

“I think this is the first dengue case detected in Kathmandu Valley this year,” Dr Pun claimed. He informed that the patient had returned home after medication. Last year too, over a dozen people in Kathmandu Valley were infected with the dengue virus.

Health workers have warned of a dengue epidemic as several studies carried out by the Epidemiology and Disease Control Division under the Department of Health Services in the past has found significant numbers of Aedes-aegypti and Aedes-albopicitus mosquitoes that spread dengue and  chikungunya in Kathmandu Valley.

Mild to high fever, severe headache, pain in the eyes, muscles and and rashes are some of the symptoms of the disease.

Meanwhile, EDCD, said it has alerted alerted health officials throughout the country to possible dengue epidemic. “We have alerted health workers,” Dr Bhim Acharya, director at EDCD, said.

He claimed that his office had already sent necessary medicines and provided training to health workers, community workers and female community health volunteers in the Tarai to prevent possible spread of the disease and are working on launching a dengue awareness campaign.