Medical camp conducted at village in Erode after boy’s death due to rat fever

A medical camp being conducted at Paruvachi village in Erode district in Tamil Nadu on Wednesday, October 2, 2024
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Following the death of a 13-year-old boy reportedly due to rat fever or leptospirosis, and with another woman being admitted to the hospital with symptoms of the disease, Health department officials conducted a medical camp at Kattur in Paruvachi village in Anthiyur block of Erode district on Wednesday (October 2, 2024).

P. Dinesh Kumar, a Class 8 student of the Panchayat Union Middle School at Sethunampalayam, vomited and fainted in his classroom on September 16. His parents, Periyasamy and Nirmala, admitted him to a private hospital in Erode.

Laboratory tests confirmed he was suffering from diphtheria, after which he was shifted to Coimbatore Medical College and Hospital on September 20. He was diagnosed with rat fever on September 28 and was under treatment.

However, his condition deteriorated and he died on September 30.

Meanwhile, another resident of the same village, Rathi, 34, was admitted to the District Headquarters Hospital in Erode with similar symptoms. Her condition was learnt to be stable.

On Tuesday, a medical team led by Jambai Block Medical Officer Manickavel Rajan, with a Mobile Medical Unit, camped in the village and undertook fever surveillance and treatment. The local body authorities, meanwhile, took up rat control activities, disinfecting cattle sheds and chlorinating water in the village and surrounding areas.

Deputy Director of Health Services S. Somasundaram told The Hindu that rat fever is a bacterial disease that can be spread through the urine of infected animals, including rats. Symptoms include high fever, headache, muscle aches, and vomiting. The bacteria causing leptospirosis is transmitted through contact of the skin and mucous membranes with mud or water, which has been contaminated with urine of rodents or infected animals.

Rat holes in the village, particularly in paddy fields, are being identified and destroyed, the official added.