Bengaluru: 5-year-old's death sparks fear of dengue outbreak in West Zone neighbourhood

Bengaluru: The death of a five-year-old girl in Vani Vilas Hospital has triggered panic among slum dwellers and social workers, who say she died of dengue. They fear a possible outbreak in their area.

The girl, Khajal, a resident of Jolly Mohalla in Sultanpet, reportedly showed symptoms of fever, cough, cold, loose motion and body pain on June 13. She was not tested for dengue until two days ago.

Dr Manoranjan Hegde, West Zone Health Officer, BBMP, said that the patient was admitted to Vani Vilas Hospital on June 16 and passed away early Thursday morning. "The dengue test report showed a negative result. She died due to hepatic encephalopathy with a dengue-like illness, according to the hospital's report," he said.

But family members claim Khajal died of dengue. 

Divya, Khajal's mother, alleged that the doctors were not transparent. "We were not told anything clearly; the doctors kept referring to our daughter's case as dengue. She was all fine and suddenly her condition became very serious. Yesterday, the doctors told us that her kidneys and liver failed and soon after, we were told she died at 9 am," she told DH.

Poor waste management

Social workers pointed out that poor waste management in the locality exposed more residents, especially children, to the risk of developing vector-borne diseases.

"Many children are showing symptoms of fever in the slum. There is a huge problem of garbage piling up and water stagnating on the streets, which is a health concern," said Jancy, a social worker with the Slum Mahila Sanghatane.

Dr Syed Sirajuddin Madni, Chief Health Officer (Public Health), BBMP, dismissed all allegations of poor management at the primary healthcare centre and assured that health officers would soon conduct a survey of the slum.