COIMBATORE: The body of a school student, who died of suspected rabies in Coimbatore, was cremated without postmortem examination to prevent further infections.
Meanwhile, health department officials conducted screenings in the locality where the deceased lived and vaccinated family members with anti-rabies vaccinated.
The deceased — a 15-year-old boy from ward number 17 of Karamadai municipality — fell ill a week ago and was taken to a private hospital on October 9. As his condition worsened, he was referred to Coimbatore Medical College Hospital on Saturday, but died without responding to treatment.
"Based on clinical tests and symptoms, which included aerophobia and hydrophobia, rabies was suspected and treatment was provided accordingly. However, he did not respond to treatment. Given the highly infectious nature of rabies, the body was handed over to local authorities for cremation without a postmortem,” said CMCH Dean Dr M Geethanjali.
Sources said the boy’s body was cremated in Coimbatore on Saturday. His family was non-responsive to health officials and claimed that the boy had not been bitten by a dog or any other animal. They stated that he had been suffering from symptoms similar to rabies for several days.
"We raised awareness in the locality and inspected around 40 houses to check if anyone owned a pet dog and whether those dogs were properly vaccinated. We also held an awareness camp at the school where he was studying. As no one else was infected, they were advised to undergo medical examinations if they developed any symptoms and avoid self-medication. Seven people, including his parents, received anti-rabies doses after the boy’s death,” said a health official.
DDHS Dr P Balusamy said that while rabies was suspected, it has not been clinically confirmed yet, and the boy did not have any external bite injuries.