Keep rodents at bay to prevent leptospirosis, says TANUVAS

Keep rodents at bay to prevent leptospirosis, says TANUVAS

Gokul Rajendran,TNN | Sep 20, 2015, 02.52 PM IST


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TRICHY: The Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (TANUVAS), Chennai cautioned people on the dangers of leptospirosis, an infectious bacterial disease transmitted from the urine of rodents, on Saturday on the occasion of Livestock and Poultry Farmers' Day and the Foundation day of the university.

An assistant professor from TANUVAS Dr Selvaraju explained to the visitors that disease was caused by bacteria in the urine of rats.

A person affected with leptospirosis will have symptoms like headache, severe fever, shivering, muscle cramp, vomiting, jaundice, reddish eyes, diarrhea and reddish skin.

"Such symptoms should not be taken lightly. You should test for the disease and get necessary treatment so that further damage can be prevented," he said. The next level of symptoms will be extreme fatigue, deafness, respiratory problem and dysfunction of kidneys and liver, which may ultimately lead to death. The disease can be diagnosed through Dark Field Microscope (DFM), MAT, IgM-ELISA and PCR tests.

Water polluted by rat urine has the biggest chance of reaching humans during monsoon and floods. The bacteria can also affect animals, through which it can enter the human body.

"Cases of leptospirosis were previously reported from some parts of Trichy . The decrease in the number of farms and grain warehouses in houses caused rodents to disappear from the rural parts. Even then, people should be more cautious and keep rodents at bay," said former vice principal of KAP Viswanatham Government Medical College Dr M A Aleem, while also assuring that it was an easily treatable disease if diagnosed at the right time.

TANUVAS advised people to create hygienic conditions, drink boiled water, take immediate treatment in case of symptoms, vaccinate pet animals, prevent sewage from mixing with drinking water supply and avoid wading through the stagnant water.

The public health and preventive medicine department expected doctors to take a serious note of such symptoms and provide appropriate treatment.

"The primary health centres (PHCs) in the rural areas witnessed sporadic cases of leptospirosis. If fever persists for more than a week, the patient will put through a series of tests to check for dengue, chikungunya and leptospirosis," said deputy director of health services (DDHS) Dr I Raveendran in Trichy.