Assam: Japanese Encephalitis claims 85 lives in 2 months

Guwahati: At least 85 people have died of Japanese Encephalitis (JE) in Assam in the last two months, a bulletin by the health department said. Ten deaths were reported over the last nine days, including one on Saturday. Since July this year, as many as 390 cases of the infection have been detected, the bulletin said.

JE is a viral brain infection that spreads through mosquito bites. The virus, found in pigs and birds, is passed to mosquitoes when they bite infected animals. Given the surge in JE cases over the past few months, a District Rapid Response Team was formed in July to deal with the situation.

All Standard Operating Procedures and guidelines communicated by National Health Mission, Assam, are being followed in the districts for case detection, management, and referral, official sources said.

Nine medical colleges and 10 district hospitals in the state, equipped with requisite facilities, have been designated as JE treatment centres, they added.