Pune News : 9 Zika virus samples sent to NIV test negative
9 Zika virus samples sent to NIV test negative
Pune Municipal Corporation health officials verified on Friday that there isn’t a Zika virus outbreak in the city after suspicious serum samples were sent to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) and returned with negative results.
None of the nine samples taken from the Yerawada and Vishrantwadi areas tested positive for a vector-borne disease, according to Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) officials.
Following the news of the first Zika virus case in Pune on November 11th, involving a 64-year-old woman from Pratik Nagar, Yerawada, the PMC Health department was placed on high alert.
After that, the local government began monitoring the area and sent serum samples from people who might have had fevers to NIV. Five of the nine samples are from family members of the confirmed Zika-infected individuals.
The reports of serum samples sent to NIV were received on Friday, and according to Dr. Suryakant Deokar, assistant health officer of PMC, all of the tests were negative for Zika infection.
Dr. Deokar went on to say that there hasn’t been an outbreak of the Zika virus in Pune and that the only cases that have been documented are irregular ones. The woman had previously visited Kerala, a state where the Zika virus is widespread. The virus does not come from a city source of infection. They will, nevertheless, keep keeping an eye on and monitoring the area.
According to a PMC health officer, a meeting with medical officers and representatives of the health department was held on Thursday to monitor the Zika virus’s spread throughout the city.
The majority of people in Pune who work in the healthcare industry are from Kerala, where the Zika virus is widespread. It has been requested that all officials remain vigilant and forward any suspected samples to NIV for verification.
In order to monitor fever cases, the medical officers under the jurisdiction of Yerawada Ward Office have been asked to collaborate with the hospitals and private clinics that fall under their jurisdiction.
Shreyas Vange
