Thursday 26 July 2012

1,150 dog-bite cases in city every month

PUNE: The stray dogs' menace in the city and dog-bite cases continue unabated in the city. On an average 1,150 dog-bite cases per month were registered in the city since January 2012. Last year, an average of 1,000 cases were reported each month.

The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) officials attributed them to several reasons. "Dog-bite cases go up during the mating season i.e. the monsoon. Easy availability of food from flourishing street food joints and restaurants is another reason," said Anjali Sabane, medical officer in the health department of the PMC.

"However, there has not been a single case of rabies reported since the beginning of the year," said Sabane. Sterlisation of stray dogs was more successful this year as the number of institutions roped in has increased. Three NGOs are working for sterlisation and vaccination of stray dogs when compared to only one last year.

"On an average 70 to 75 sterlisations take place every day. After sterlisation, the dogs are kept under observation in the dog pound for three days and then let out. More sterlisation is happening as the work load on the lone NGO has reduced," said Sabane.

Last year, around 9,000 dogs were vaccinated and sterilized. This year, 5,550 dogs have been sterlised and vaccinated by June-end. There are about 40,500 stray dogs in the city.

The sterilization efforts have reduced rabies over the years from 56 cases in 1997 to seven in 2000, three in 2005 and just one in 2009-2010. No rabies case has been recorded in 2011-12 so far.

Treatment is available at 14 civic-run hospitals and three out-patient departments of the PMC which reduced rabies cases in the city. Many people ignore dog bites and seek medical help only when full infection sets in. Experts stressed the need for health educational programmes for the medical community and for the public about the dangers of inadequately managed dog bites. The importance of proper wound care and post-exposure vaccination must be reinforced to prevent total rabies infection, they said.

The period from infection to the onset of symptoms is the rabies incubation period. It may vary from a few days to several years, but is typically between one and three months. During this time, the rabies virus multiplies within the body.

If the bite is not on the face, it takes usually two to six months for a person to develop the symptoms. The early symptoms are fever, headache, general tiredness and pain at the site of the bite. As the disease progresses, neurological symptoms such as insomnia, anxiety, confusion, hyper salivation, difficulty in swallowing and hydrophobia set in.

Ignorance does much damage and patients downplay the severe consequences of a stray dog's bite. Youngsters also ignore dog bites and hide it from parents. Some start treatment soon after the bite, but do not complete the full five-course vaccine.

"A single injection costs Rs 300 and the full course costs Rs 1,500. This course is given free at PMC-run hospitals. But it is costly in private hospitals and hence most people abandon it midway," a doctor at Naidu Hospital said.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/pune/1150-dog-bite-cases-in-city-every-month/articleshow/15155361.cms

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