A six-member team from the National Centre for Disease Control,led by Dr Veena Mittal will visit Gujarat to investigate the prevalence of Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic fever (CCHF). The multidisciplinary team will assess the situation, said an official of the Union Health Ministry. The virus has so far killed three people. As per the preliminary report sent by National Institute of Virology (NIV),Pune,it has the potential of killing 20-90 per cent people. The virus is known to be transmitted between animals through ticks, said the report. There is no specific treatment available. Ribavarin,an antiviral drug used to treat hepatitis C,has been recommended. More samples have come on Wednesday and we will be ready with the results by Thursday, said Dr A C Misra,the Director of NIV. According to the World Health Organisation,CCHF virological or serological evidence and vector presence has been seen in India. Dr V M Katoch,the director general of Indian Council for Medical Research,said,This is just a chance that it got investigated. Antibodies in animals have been seen,which show that the virus is present in the country. A man is only a bystander. However,there is no need to panic. The vector may be there,but it is not necessary that a disease will erupt because of it. We have a vector for yellow fever but we do not have it here, Misra,added. The presence of the fever is not unexpected in the country,according to the WHO Representative to India Dr Nata Menabde. With CCHF cases being reported from neighbouring Pakistan annually and tick vectors known to exist in India,the disease being reported here is not totally unexpected, said Menabde. CCHF is endemic in many countries in Africa,Europe and Asia,and outbreaks have been recorded in Kosovo,Albania,Iran,Pakistan,South Africa.
