East Bengaluru sees most cases in the time of cholera

Parts of Eastern Bengaluru are repeatedly coming on the radar of the state’s epidemic surveillance unit, after registering the maximum number of cholera cases besides those of acute gastroenteritis and diarrhoea.

As on Tuesday, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has reported 38 positive cases of acute gastroenteritis, out of which 25 are from Bengaluru East. The city has also seen seven positive cholera cases, five of which are from the East. All the five cases were reported at the B R Ambedkar Medical College Hospital.

The BBMP had confirmed last week that there were at least seven positive cases of cholera in the city, but that they were sporadic.

Dr Venkatesh, Nodal Officer, BBMP, said, “Our officials did a household survey of people who are affected. Most of the patients said they had consumed food elsewhere and not in their own areas. Some of them had attended family gatherings while some had eaten at unhygienic places.”

He said they were sporadic cases where only one person from a family was affected. “The patients have to remain hydrated. Consuming oral rehabilitation salts is recommended,” said Dr Venkatesh.

Meanwhile, Dr Ansar Ahmed, District Surgeon, said the Isolation Hospital, which is authorised to treat gastroenteritis cases, has seen at least 150 cases over the last one month.

“Initially, we suspected all these cases to be cholera. But they turned out to be gastroenteritis. The culture tests yielded negative results. Possibly, it could be some other microorganisms that led to the problem,” said Dr Ahmed. He added that it was a cholera-like condition with similar symptoms.

Dr Ansar said that 90 suspected cholera samples were sent for culture test. None tested positive and there were no confirmed cases, he said.