Date:27/09/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/09/27/stories/2007092761400800.htm

Andhra Pradesh

Conjunctivitis ‘on the way out’

N. Rahul

State was in the grip of the ‘red eye’ disease for a month

Disease expected to withdraw after rain stops and the weather dries up
Strikes generally in September and November following temperature changes

HYDERABAD: Conjunctivitis, the ‘red eye’ disease that gripped the State for nearly a month, is on the decline.

Doctors and health authorities confirmed that the infection which was so virulent earlier this month had entered the dying phase. B. Motilal, Joint Director, National Programme for Control of Blindness, said the decline was reported at the weekly review meeting of district-level programme officers on Saturday. The numbers had come down considerably over the previous week in all districts, except in Hyderabad, Warangal and Nizamabad. The three districts reported over a thousand cases during the week at Government hospitals.

V. Chandrasekhar Reddy, Superintendent of Sarojini Devi Eye Hospital here, said the number of patients visiting the hospital with conjunctivitis had dropped from hundred a day ten days ago to 60 to 80 a day. He expected the disease to withdraw after the rain stopped and the weather dried up.

The symptoms

Conjunctivitis as sourced to ‘adeno’ virus group was rampant in the State, affecting people of all age groups, having assumed an epidemic form. Red eyes, foreign body sensation, swelling and stickiness of the lid in mornings and discharge were the characteristics of the disease.

It is a self-limiting disease that lasts three to five days. Doctors administered eye drops to them to act as a lubricant against irritation and discomfort. The drops also served as anti-biotics to check secondary infection.

The disease generally strikes between September and November following environmental and temperature changes, causing growth of the virus. It spread by contact with infected persons and objects used by them.

However, doctors said people had a misconception that it was caused by eye-to-eye contact. Dr. Rao B.Y, an ophthalmologist at Gandhi Hospital, said there were no complications associated with conjunctivitis but ‘keratitis’ (inflammation of the black eye) could occur in cases where the illness prolonged beyond five days. The patients will have pain if the black eye was involved. Otherwise, there was no pain in simple conjunctivitis (inflammation of white eye).

Brisk business

Homeo stores in Hyderabad also did a brisk business selling pills and eye drops both for preventive and curative aspects of disease.