ABSTRACT
Background: Dengue is one of the most rapidly spreading mosquito-borne viral diseases in the world. Aedes aegypti mosquito is the main vector of dengue and Chikungunya. Entomological surveillance on Aedes mosquito has been standardized on different indices like House index, Container index, Breteau index. Larval indices are important predictors of outbreaks and are valuable in taking preventive measures. The objectives of the present study was to study the trend of larval indices over four months in selected wards of Kaiparambu Panchayat, Thrissur, Kerala, India and to identify the major breeding sources.Methods: A series of surveys were conducted from May to August of 2017 in Kaiparambu Panchayat under the field practice area of Amala Institute of Medical Sciences Thrissur. Houses were selected serially from 4, 5 and 6 wards with roughly 120 houses being covered each month.Results: A total of 489 houses were surveyed over 4 months. Overall, positive containers (with larvae) were present in 375 of 4055 potential containers showing a calculated House index (HI) is 44.4%, Container index (CI) is 11.5% and the Breteau Index is 76.7%. All three indices increased from May to June, peaked in July and dropped by August. Plastic containers were the most common source of breeding.Conclusions: The indices indicate risk even in the pre-monsoon season and there is a marked rise during monsoon. Hence, control measures need to be adopted during the pre-monsoon season so as to reduce the impact of the impending outbreak.
ABSTRACT
Background: Food allergy is defined as a reproducible adverse immune reaction to food proteins. Food allergies can result in life threatening reactions and diminish quality of life. In the last several decades, prevalence of food allergy has increased in several regions throughout the world.Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted among 321 young adults of the age 17 to 26 years from various colleges in Kerala. The participants were asked to fill out a pretested questionnaire. The data was collected and entered in MS Excel and analyzed.Results: Adverse reactions following food consumption was experienced by 82 respondents (25.5%). Out of these 82 respondents, 38 (46%) had their condition diagnosed by a doctor. 23 respondents had only one episode of such an attack. 41 respondents took medications for the attack. 14 respondents had been hospitalized at least once for such an attack. The most common symptoms following the consumption of food were as follows: vomiting, itching and eczema. The symptoms occur after the consumption of sea food/fish and eggs mostly. 27 respondents had a family history of food allergy.Conclusions: The symptoms of food allergy may vary from minor itching to even anaphylaxis. It is very important to know the causative allergen in the diet to prevent the occurrence of an episode of food allergy.