Date: Fri 24 Aug 2012
Source: The Himalayan, Himalayan News Service [edited]
http://thehimalayantimes.com/fullNews.php?headline=Four+die+of+mystery+disease+in+Kalikot&NewsID=344743
Four die of mystery disease in Kalikot
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An unknown disease in Kalikot has claimed the lives of four girl students of Kalikot's chhalaha-based Kalika Lower Secondary School and as many as 90 students have been taken ill. According to head teacher Man Bahadur Budha, the students had been complaining of fever, common cold, headache and swelling on the body for the past one month.
The identities of the four deceased students are yet to be ascertained. Twenty more people from the village are said to be taken ill due to the unknown disease. The disease has infected people from 6-month-old to 20 years of age. Locals accused the government for being indifferent towards the outbreak.
"The lack of citadel [probably an analgesic and anti-pyretic equivalent of acetaminophen/paracetamol. - Mod.CP] at Khinneta Health Post had added to the patients' woes," local Bhati Bam said. Chief District Officer, Jagat Bahadur Basnet, said health workers would be deployed to the incident site on Sat 25 Aug 2012.
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Communicated by:
ProMED-mail
[From the information available it is not certain that the illness responsible for the 4 deaths among 90 school-children is a consequence of an infectious disease. Reports of undiagnosed disease in Nepal have been frequent in the past and 'Requests For Information' have been unproductive. Kalikot District is a one of the seventy-five districts of Nepal. This district covers an area of 1,741 km² and has a population (2001) of 105,580. A map showing the location of Kalikot District within Nepal can be accessed at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalikot_District, and the interactive HealthMap of Nepal is available at: http://healthmap.org/r/1COd.
Part (5) of ProMED-mail 'Measlese update 2012 (33) 20120825.126334' describes the almost simultaneous occurrence of the deaths of four infants in the Doli District of Nepal. The fatalities of the children in these two Districts are unlikely to be related, since the deaths of the infants in Doli district were attributed to administration of defective measles virus vaccine.
