HYDERABAD: When it comes to avoiding vector borne diseases in Telangana, focus of the State Health department is on killing Aedes aegypti mosquitoes which is a carrier of Zika virus.
All means are being employed to kill this genus of mosquitoes and its breeding grounds.
Disinfection of aircrafts
However, what if any luggage carrying these mosquitoes slips into an aircraft from an infection-notified country and lands at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport?
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare officials are ensuring that disinfection of aircrafts is taken up so that mosquitoes of any genus and bacteria are killed. Dr Anuradha Medoju, senior regional director, Regional Office for Health and Family Welfare, said airlines sends them report on number of passengers carried in an aircraft and number of disinfection cans used for process. “Disinfection is carried out in all international and domestic flights. Any virus carrying vector will be killed. This step has been carried from a long time and is mandatory,” she said.
Apart from disinfecting aircrafts and screening passengers coming from Zika virus infection-notified countries, it is learnt that staff at immigration, airlines, airport, were educated about the virus and its prevention.
A few days ago, the senior regional director communicated to Telangana’s commissioner of Health and Family Welfare about activities expected from state Health Authorities. One of the important step was spreading awareness in maternity hospitals regarding the virus.
Detecting microcephaly
Earlier, the health officials planned to find if any baby is born or developed head abnormally small in size. The condition of having such small head size is called microcephaly. When scores of Zika cases were reported in Brazil, newborns with Microcephaly were reported.
Dr Anuradha said pregnant women should undergo scanning during their 3rd, 5th and 9th month of pregnancy. Officials said if a woman conceives in a Zika-notified country and comes to India for delivery, scanning becomes important.