Gastro kills over 200 in 31 Nepali districts

Gastroenteritis has claimed 207 lives in 31 Nepali districts this year, The Rising Nepal newspaper reported. In the past six months, a total of 16,162 cases were registered in hospitals across the country. The government is planning to carry out operational research to find out the root cause behind the rising diarrhea cases in some western districts where outbreaks have been recurring for a long time. Dr. Manas Kumar Banerjee, project coordinator of Avian Influenza Control Project under the Epidemiology and Disease Control Unit (EDCU), said the government started working from Monday to find out the causes behind focal epidemic. "As such cases have been recurring in Kalikot for a long time, the main focus of the study will be in the area," Dr. Banerjee said. EDCU under the Department of Health Services said 76 people died in Kalikot alone in the last six months. Kalikot district is some 400 km west of capital Kathmandu. Director at the EDCU Dr. Laxmi Bikram Thapa said some cases of cholera were recorded in Kathmandu and southern Nepali districts like Saptari, Rautahat and Chitwan besides western Kalikot. Dr. Banerjee said early pre-monsoon and timely monsoon caused the large number of gastroenteritis focal outbreak this year. He said the reason for the outbreak was bacterial contamination of drinking water caused by flooding, landslide and rainfall. Dr. Banerjee said this time the diarrhea disease was seen in three cycles and the first cycle appeared in Kathmandu in central Nepal, Kalikot in the west, Rautahat and Saptari in the south, beginning from April and lasted till June. Kalikot, Humla in the west, Dhanusa, Mahottari, Rautahat and few other Terai districts in the south were affected by the second cycle during July-September. The third cycle affected Sarlahi, Bara, Parsa and again in Saptari districts all in the south. "Such recurrences have posed a challenge to the government. The cases have been spreading but it could be brought under control if the people pay attention to their daily routines, sanitation and drinking water," Dr. Banerjee said. He said 80 to 90 percent of the problem was due to contaminated drinking water and 10 to 20 percent cases due to the consumption of bacterial contaminated food. He said more cases were reported in the areas where there were no health professionals and in the community with lower economic conditions. In 2002, 16 districts were affected and 31 people died out of 2,723 cases due to gastroenteritis, 35 died out of 6,674 cases in 2003, 408 died out of 19,811 cases in 2004 and 37 died out of 2,137 cases in 2005.