New Delhi: In the light of ‘Tomato flu’ being reported in neighbouring Kerala, the Coimbatore district administration has stepped up surveillance in the border to check the disease from entering Tamil Nadu. In a bid to screen people coming from the neighbouring state, a team of police, health and revenue officials have been deployed at the Walayar check-post located on the Tamil Nadu-Kerala border.
Speaking to The Indian Express, Dr P Aruna, deputy director of health services, Coimbatore, said that the Tamil Nadu district has deployed three teams for monitoring the border round the clock.
“Three teams comprising revenue inspectors, health inspectors and police have been deployed on a shift basis. They will note down if someone has fever and rashes. This flu is a self-limiting one and there is no specific drug for this. If someone is infected with this flu, they need to be kept in isolation as this could spread rapidly from one person to another,” The Indian Express quoted Dr Aruna as saying.
The Coimbatore deputy director of health services further added that the Tomato flu affects children below the age of five years.
She said that the Tamil Nadu authorities have also been screening the anganwadi centres across the Coimbatore district and close to 24 mobile teams with health officers have been deployed to carry out the screening process.
The ‘Tomato fever’ or ‘Tomato flu’ is an unidentified fever characterised by rashes and blisters which are red in colour, hence the name.
High fever is more common in the infected children with red rashes and blisters seen on their skin. The flu might also cause aches and swelling in the joints.
Infected children mostly are dehydrated and often have tiredness, besides cramps in the stomach, diarrhoea and nausea, vomiting, discolouration of hands, knees and buttocks, along with cough, sneezing and runny nose.
It has been reported that at least 82 children below the age of five years have been infected with Tomato Flu in Kerala's Kollam district.