VELLORE: Two children died of suspected dengue in separate places in Vellore district in two days, leaving the authorities of the Health department on their toes, sources said.
Twelve year old Divya, studying Class VI, of Rangasamudram in Gudiyatham, died at the Govt Vellore Medical College (GVMC) hospital at Adukkambarai on Monday night after suffering from fever since October 15.
The girl was taken to the government hospital (GH) at Gudiyatham on October 19 before being referred to GVMC on the next day.
Though relatives claimed that she died of dengue infection, health department officials maintained that the girl was down with severe viral fever.
“It is not a case of dengue death. Divya was down with severe viral fever. It caused the death,” KST Suresh, deputy director of Health, Vellore, told Express.
He noted that the parents had taken medicine from a local pharmacy without consulting a qualified doctor and gave her for four days before taking her to the local GH.
Divya’s sister Puviarasi, 13, is also suffering from viral fever and is undergoing treatment at the GVMC, the sources stated, adding her condition is stable.
Meanwhile, a five-year-old child, Kriankumar, son of Ahilan, residing at Pallanthuranvattom in Natrampalli, died of high fever on the wee hours of Tuesday at a private hospital in Salem.
The child was down with fever from October 17 and was taken to the local GH on the next day. “Despite the doctors advising the parents to take the child to the GVMC, the parents took him to a private hospital in Dharmapuri on Monday and later to the Salem private hospital where he died at 4 am on Tuesday”, the DD said.
The death toll due to fever in Vellore district has risen to three today with the death of Divya and Kirankumar. Another child, Nakshatra, of Vettuvanam, near Vellore city, died on October 15.
The death of Nakashatra was officially confirmed due to Dengue while the two others were stated to be out of severe viral fever.
Vellore is reported to have 292 dengue cases so far in the month, sources said.