Zika virus / Maharashtra reports its first-ever case of Zika virus in Pune district

Pune: Maharashtra on Saturday confirmed its first case of Zika virus in Pune after a 50-year-old woman tested positive for the infectious disease, putting authorities on alert. The state officials have appealed to people to not panic and follow the safety precautions.

The woman from Belsar village in Purandar tehsil of Pune, who contracted the Zika virus, has recovered completely, state health officials said, adding that she and her family members are not showing any symptoms of the disease now. Apart from the Zika virus, the woman was also infected with Chikungunya. The woman received her test report confirming the infection on Friday, officials said.

“We request people not to panic. It’s due to the proactive work of the field teams that the case was detected," an official of Pune zila parishad said. "We are working hard to contain the spread and provide residents with the best healthcare services,” Ayush Prasad, chief executive officer of the zila parishad, said.

The first case of the Zika virus in the state has prompted officials to prevent its spread and officials have rushed a medical team to the village. The medical team met the sarpanch and gram panchayat members, instructing them on preventive measures, an official statement read.

Special health inspection teams have been appointed to survey patients with fever in seven villages in the 5km perimeter of Belsar village.

As the village continued reporting fever cases, a special team from NIV Pu visited the Belsar and Parinche villages to collect 41 blood samples between July 27- July 29. Out of these samples, 21 tested positive for dengue and three for chikungunya. One sample was identified with the infection of the Zika virus on July 30.

In the wake of a potential threat to pregnant women, Belsar village authorities have been instructed to provide mosquito nets to pregnant women. The World Health Organisation (WHO) states that the Zika virus infection during pregnancy can cause infants to be born with microcephaly and other congenital malformations known as congenital Zika syndrome.

Zika virus disease is caused by a virus transmitted primarily by Aedes mosquitoes which bite during the day. A person infected with this virus is most likely to experience mild symptoms like fever, rash, conjunctivitis, muscle and joint pain, malaise, or headache.

Zika is a moderate disease as 80 per cent of patients do not get any symptoms and the remaining 20 per cent have moderate flu-like symptoms, state surveillance officer Dr Pradip Awate told PTI. One can recover by drinking enough water, taking rest and having a simple paracetamol tablet.

Death due to this virus has not been reported, Dr Awate added.