Kanpur Zika Virus Patient Stable, Samples Of 22 Contacts Test Negative

The Zika virus patient in Kanpur is under treatment but stable, and samples of 22 people who were in contact with him have resulted negative for the mosquito-borne disease, officials said today.

The 57-year-old man had tested positive for Zika virus on October 22, prompting the Centre to send a high-level multi-disciplinary team of medical experts to Kanpur.

"One case of Zika virus infection (a mosquito-borne viral infection) was found in the Pokharpur village of Jajmau area here a few days back. It was diagnosed at the Air Force Hospital, Kanpur," Kanpur Division Commissioner Raj Shekhar said.

He said immediately the administration and the Health Department took necessary measures, including diagnostic and preventive, as required and on Tuesday he visited the village along with health officials to review the situation. "As of date, only one case of Zika virus is reported in Kanpur. Treatment of the patient is going on at the Air Force station hospital and the patient is stable," Raj Shekhar said.

"The Health Department has collected samples of 22 other persons who are family members or close contacts. But all the samples were found negative for the virus," he added.

The senior IAS officer said two expert teams - one from the Centre and another from the UP government -- are in Kanpur and working on the case.

The expert teams have collected the mosquitoes from sites that will be sent to the National Malaria Research Institute (NMRI) in New Delhi for DNA testing in a day to two, he added.

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During the site visit, the division commissioner was accompanied by the chief medical officer, the additional municipal commissioner, among other senior officers of Kanpur.

They interacted with the family members of the Zika virus patient, took case details, his travel history and information of people who were in his contact in recent days, according to officials.

Awareness campaigns about the infection have been started and preventive measures are also being implemented against the disease, the officials said.

Zika virus, whose first outbreak was recorded in African countries, can cause pregnancy-related complications and increased risk of neurologic complications in adults and children, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

The incubation period (the time from exposure to symptoms) of Zika virus disease is estimated to be 3 to 14 days.

The majority of people infected with the Zika virus do not develop symptoms, the WHO says. The symptoms are generally mild including fever, rash, conjunctivitis, muscle and joint pain, malaise, and headache, and usually last for 2 to 7 days, it says.

While researches are ongoing there is no treatment available for the Zika virus but its preventive measures include protection against mosquito bites during the day and early evening, according to the WHO.