Dengue wards with dedicated beds set up at major Chandigarh hospitals, says DHS

Indian Express

5 days ago

With the monsoon being active in Chandigarh, the health department has intensified several activities to control the breeding of mosquitoes and to prevent vector-borne diseases like malaria and dengue. So far, two cases of dengue have been reported, and according to Dr Suman Singh, Director, Health Services, Chandigarh, hospitals are well-prepared for any exigency.
'Dengue wards with dedicated beds have been established at major hospitals. Adequate testing kits, necessary drugs /logistics are in place for case management. Blood banks are fully prepared to meet any requirement of blood components,' says Dr Singh. The whole area of UT is daily monitored for field activities by teams from headquarters as well as malaria units. The teams from headquarters are led by the Assistant Director of Malaria, the State Epidemiologist, and two multipurpose health supervisors.
These teams supervise the work of health workers, breeding checkers and store teams. Chemical control measures, adds Singh, are being carried out aggressively throughout the entire city in the form of spraying with insecticides, treatment with MLO/Temephos, and fumigation at various locations.
'Fumigation operations are being done jointly by Malaria Wing, and the MC, and this is being done in a roster-wise manner to cover the entire city.
The Fumigation operations were started from April, 2025, onwards. Strict implementation of bye-laws is being done by issuing notices, show-cause notices and challans to the defaulters for creating mosquitogenic situations. Biological control measures include the release of larvivorus fish, Gambusia, in water collections,' says Dr Singh.
Effective preventive measures such as using mosquito nets, wearing long-sleeved clothing, eliminating standing water around homes, and ensuring timely medical consultation in case of fever, adds Dr Singh, are important. As many as 4,726 notices have been given, with 1,151 show-cause notices and 169 challans. Awareness activities are being done at the community level to make residents aware of the preventive steps for control of vector-borne diseases, with special advisories issued to all educational institutions, residential areas, and public places.
Dr Parvinder Chawla, senior consultant, Internal Medicine, Fortis Hospital, Mohali, says dengue is caused by four types of viruses that are spread by infected mosquitoes. Patients with dengue fever exhibit symptoms such as chills, fatigue, fever, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, body rash, aches and pains (eye pain, typically behind the eyes, muscle, joint, or bone pain). 'For most infected patients, dengue infection behaves like just another viral infection with fever and body aches improving within a few days without the need for any aggressive medical treatment apart from the fever-lowering medicines and rest. Warning signs include vomiting, pain in the abdomen, severe headache, persistent pain anywhere else in the body, bleeding from any site and inability to continue with good liquid intake. Presence of any of these warning signs means that the patient is in the critical phase and needs to be monitored closely for at least 48-72 hours in a hospital setting.'
Talking about monitoring the blood platelet count in patients with dengue, Dr Chawla said, 'Monitoring haemoglobin and hematocrit is more important than even monitoring platelet count in dengue. We should be checking these two values on the second-third day of fever and monitor them closely, especially in a patient who continues to have symptoms.
An increase in haemoglobin and hematocrit signifies poor oral intake (and hence the need for hospitalisation), while a falling haemoglobin and hematocrit along with clinical deterioration suggests internal bleeding and hence, requires hospitalisation too. Even if the platelet count is low, platelets need to be transfused only if the count is below ~ 10,000/cmm or there is evidence of active bleeding from any site. For most other patients in the critical phase of the disease, judicious guarded intravenous fluids suffice to tide over the crisis.'
In Panchkula, the administration has instructed the MC and Panchkula Municipal Council to accelerate fumigation across the district and ensure better coordination to ensure the prevention of mosquito-borne diseases.
Free testing facilities (Dengue NS1/ IgM ELISA) are available at GMSH-16, GMCH-32 and PGI, and a dedicat