Close watch on bone-crusher virus

NST: KUALA LUMPUR: The Aedes mosquito may become host to another virus after the deadly dengue fever outbreaks in recent years.
Health authorities are watching out for signs of the mosquito carrying the Chikungunya virus, which has led to deaths in certain Indian states.
A red alert was put out recently after two Malaysians came down with the disease in Ipoh last month on returning from Tamil Nadu, India.
Timely admission to the Ipoh Specialist Hospital on Dec 11 prevented a possible outbreak.
Chikungunya is a debilitating illness, often characterised by fever, headache, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, muscle pain, rashes, and joint pain. It is also called the bone-crusher disease because it can cause severe pain in the joints.
But just as local health authorities were counting their blessings, another scare involving the viral disease came barely a week later.
This time, an Indian national was admitted to Ipoh Hospital on Dec 21.
Again, quick treatment prevented the disease from spreading.
In the first incident, a mother and child who returned from Tamil Nadu fell ill and sought treatment at the Ipoh Specialist Hospital.
Health deputy director-general Datuk Dr Ramlee Rahmat said a battery of tests revealed that they were victims of the viral disease.
"Thanks to alert doctors and health teams, we averted a possible outbreak. When the victims displayed symptoms of the disease, officials immediately isolated them and provided treatment."
He said the mother and child underwent treatment until Dec 14 before they were discharged.
In the second case, the Indian national was warded at Ipoh Hospital until Dec 25.
It is learnt that the victims in both cases had visited places in Tamil Nadu hit by the Chikungunya disease.
The disease is rarely life-threatening if treated early but can cause death in some circumstances.
It first made headlines in Malaysia in 1999, when 27 people in Port Klang were infected.
A few months ago, an outbreak in a village in Perak was arrested before it could spread, Dr Ramlee said.
The Chikungunya disease is making a comeback in India with numerous cases reported also in the Comoros, Mauritius, Reunion and Seychelles.
Until Oct 10 last year, 151 districts in Andhra Pradesh, the Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Kerala had reported cases.
More than 1.25 million cases had been reported in India.
Dr Ramlee said there was no vaccine to fight the infection.
"Prevention is entirely dependent upon taking steps to avoid mosquito bites and the elimination of mosquito breeding sites."
The ministry has not started screening air passengers from India but advised them to seek treatment immediately if they develop symptoms of the disease.