Children Die of 'Mysterious Illness'

In Rajasthan's Sirohi district, seven children aged 2 and 14 years have died of 'mysterious illness' with symptoms ranging from fever to seizures.

Al residents from Fulabai Kheda and Fulaber villages in Sirohi, these children breathed their last between April 9 and 13.

Fever / Pyrexia - Symptom Evaluation - Types - FAQs
Fever or Pyrexia is an elevation in normal body temperature. Causes of fever include infections, injury, cancers, inflammation, hormonal, metabolic and genetic diseases.

‘Three more children have been admitted to a hospital as a precautionary measure. They have mild symptoms of cold and one has pneumonia.’

Joint Director (Health), Jageshwar Prasad, said the cause of the deaths is yet to be ascertained.

"While they seem to be cases of some acute viral disease, nothing can be said with certainty till all their reports are received," he added.

Prasad also said that the deaths were reported within a day of showing symptoms.

Convulsions / Seizures / Fits - Symptom Evaluation
Seizure or a convulsion is a result of abnormal electrical activity in the brain. If there are two or more unprovoked seizures at an interval of at least 24 hours, it is referred to as epilepsy.

A mother who lost her five-year-old child said that her son woke up at 5 am and asked for water before having seizures. The boy vomited and then died at around 8 am.

"Three of the seven deceased children had consumed local flavoured ice," Prasad said, though he ruled out a case of acute food poisoning.

Quiz on Fits
Fits or Seizures could happen due to a number of reasons. Not all fits qualify to being labeled as epilepsy. Fits manifest in various forms. Test your knowledge on fits by taking this quiz.

Teams of doctors from Jaipur and Jodhpur are set to visit the area.

"The situation is being monitored. Around 300 houses have already been surveyed and 58 samples have been sent to a lab in Jaipur for testing," Prasad said.

Eluru-like Mysterious Illness Cases Emerge in Andhra Pradesh�s Village
Andhra Pradesh’s Eluru town of West Godavari district was hit by a mysterious illness early December last year amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The illness seemed to have gone away but has now emerged in a village 30km from Eluru.

Kuldeep Singh, head of the paediatric department at Jodhpur's All India Institute of Medical Sciences, said it seems to be a case of viral infection.

"The state has sought our assistance and a team of doctors will be sent there soon," he said.

Source-IANS