Chennai: In the wake of the four people who have died from the rare brain-eating amoeba disease in neighboring Kerala, Tamil Nadu, the Government’s Public Health Department has issued guidelines to prevent the deadly disease in the state.
In a circular to all the District health officers across the state, Director of the state Director of Public Health and Preventive Medicine Dr TS Selvavinayagam has issued certain guidelines to be followed with immediate effect.
Accordingly, “Primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), is a fatal infection of the brain caused by the eukaryote Naegleria fowleri. It presents with meningitis-like symptoms such as headache, fever, nausea, vomiting, stiff neck, confusion, confusion, and seizures.
In view of the recent cases reported from Kerala, the following instructions are issued.
The public especially children should not be allowed to swim and bathe in stagnant and polluted dirty water. The concerned local bodies must advise this.
Environmental sanitation should be ensured around stagnant water bodies, ponds, lakes, etc. Swimming pool hygiene should be ensured as per public health guidelines. Adequate chlorination should be done in swimming pools owned by concerned private or local bodies.
Because the organism cannot survive in this environment, concerned local health authorities should ensure chlorine levels above 2 ppm in high-risk areas. Local bodies should be instructed to keep water bodies clean and control entry into water bodies.
All public and private medical practitioners should be consulted to diagnose suspicious cases based on the symptoms and those affected by the disease”.
A rare brain infection caused by a brain-eating amoeba has caused four deaths since the month of May in the state of Kerala. Tamil Nadu States News India: Top News India, States News, States News Headlines, Online State News India, State Politics news
