Central Team in Sundargarh to Probe Scrub Typhus Situation

Sundargarh: To review the rising scrub typhus cases in Odisha’s Sundargarh district, a six-member central team reached there on Saturday.

This six-member team includes Dr. Sameer Gulati, Professor, Lady Hardinge Medical College, New Delhi; Dr. Tushar N Nale, Public Health Specialist, National Centre for Disease Control, New Delhi; Dr. Dhara Shah, Assistant Director (Microbiology), National Center for Disease Control, New Delhi, and two medical experts from Odisha.

The central team attended a review meeting at the conference hall of the Sundargarh CDMO.

The total scrub typhus cases in Sundargarh have risen to 292. The first scrub typhus patient was identified in Sundargarh district in January 2023. The number of scrub typhus cases is on the rise after August. Around 42 persons tested positive for the infection during the past three days.

Scrub typhus is transmitted by the bites of infected chiggers (larval mites). The most common symptoms of the disease include fever. The chigger bites can cause itchy, inflamed bumps on the skin called ‘eschar’. It is one of the infections if left untreated, can have fatal consequences.