An outbreak of the Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) in Madhya Pradesh’s Neemuch district has claimed the lives of two persons, sparking panic among people and prompting the government authorities to launch a drive to identify patients with the illness’ symptoms and ensure their treatment, officials said.
Guillain-Barré Syndrome is a rare autoimmune disorder in which the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks the peripheral nervous system, leading to nerve inflammation, muscle weakness, difficulty in swallowing or breathing and in severe cases, full-body paralysis. It’s called a ‘post-infectious’ condition since it usually follows a bacterial or viral infection such as flu or food poisoning.
In Manasa, over a dozen people have been detected with its symptoms, with Deputy Chief Minister and Public Health and Medical Education Minister, Rajendra Shukla, on Saturday confirming that 14 GBS patients have been detected so far in the town, which has a population of about 35,000. The first GBS patients here were identified on January 12 and admitted to hospitals in Jaipur and Ahmedabad, he informed.
“Unfortunately, two patients have died. Two other patients were kept on life support, and their condition is now out of danger,” he said, adding that the state government was bearing the cost of the patients’ treatment.
Shukla also visited Manasa, located 30 km from the district headquarters, to review the situation.
Also Read: Maharashtra records 205 Guillain-Barre Syndrome cases; death toll at 8
The authorities have been asked to set up a control room in the town and create a special ward for GBS patients at the local government hospital, deploy ambulances equipped with life-saving systems and ensure adequate stock of medicines and injections besides making other arrangements to tackle the outbreak.
Since the disease is sometimes linked to eating undercooked poultry, unpasteurised dairy, or consuming water contaminated with sewage, efforts were underway to create awareness among Manasa residents about precautions to prevent the GBS outbreak, and door-to-door surveys were being conducted to check people’s health, informed Shukla.
However, the state government is yet to ascertain how GBS spread in the town.
“Samples taken from a water purification plant and other places have not been found contaminated at first glance. Samples of patients’ blood serum, food items and other materials have been sent to institutes in Hyderabad, Kolkata and Pune for testing,” Shukla said.
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