Flu like illness strikes, many hospitalised
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, June 27 2017: A village of about 40 residents in Churachandpur's Henglep sub-division has been hit hard by a flu-like illness since last week with the disease sparing none, forcing local authorities to roll out contingency plan with the assistance of KKL GHQ and at least 25 people have been moved from the village to the District Hospital since Saturday night .

Hengkom village which is located 35-kms from here along the Tipaimukh road has been stuck by the illness since last week.

A medical team deputed by the CMO has reportedly found at least 31 of them to be ill when it visited the village on Tuesday .

As the situation worsened the Kuki Khanglai Lompi GHQs stepped in with its resources and moved 19 people who are identified to be more severe than the others to the District Hospital on Saturday night at about 12 midnight.

They were treated at the hospital with their blood samples sent to Imphal for diagnosing the cause .

Some of the people were reportedly discharged on Monday but another 7 more people were brought to the hospital again last night and early today.

KKL president Kamthang Haokip said from the test conducted in local labs one of the patients have tested positive for Malaria but the cause of illness for the others is still not known .

The Chief Medical Officer of Churachandpur Dr Kim Simte when contacted said they are extending all possible help to the villagers.

The flu like illness which has shown symptoms of high fever, throat infection, body ache, cough etc can only be ascertained after receiving the test results of the blood samples sent to Imphal.

It may be mentioned here that the Health Commissioner PK Singh had in his visit last year during the peak of the Rabies outbreak had ordered stationing a fully functional lab with a competent microbiologist to fill the void of delays in diagnosis of the frequent outbreak of diseases in the district.

The reason for the blood samples being sent to Imphal even after that order is still not known but, it visibly is disheartening and is clearly delaying the accurate treatment or response from the medical fraternity .

A group of women who attended to the patients today confirmed that fowls in the village had died in large number days prior to the outbreak of illness in human.

Some village elders also pointed their suspicion to the village drinking water as the possible source of the illness .

Henglep MLA TT Haokip visited the patients yesterday at the hospital and promised to take up the case before a competent authority.

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