Govt issues guidelines for co-infections of coronavirus with dengue, flu, other seasonal diseases

As India continues to battle the coronavirus pandemic, the government has issued guidelines on prevention and treatment of co-infections of Covid-19 with other seasonal epidemic-prone diseases like dengue, malaria, seasonal influenza, and chikungunya, observed every year during this time.

The government has also said that the co-infections can not only present as a diagnostic dilemma but may co-exist in coronavirus cases.

The health ministry said that while a coronavirus case may present with (i) Acute onset of fever and cough and (ii) Acute onset of any three or more of the following signs or symptoms: fever, cough, general weakness/fatigue, headache, myalgia, sore throat, coryza, dyspnoea, anorexia/nausea/vomiting, diarrhea, altered mental status, according to the WHO, the “case definition is not very specific”.

It said that seasonal epidemic-prone diseases like dengue, malaria and the flu may all present as febrile [showing the symptoms of a fever] illness, with symptoms that mimic that of the coronavirus. Read the guidelines here.

“If there is a co-infection, then apart from the febrile illness there may be constellation of signs and symptoms that may lead to difficulty in diagnosis,” the health ministry said, listing out the approach to diagnosis of suspected co-infection.

While each of these infections are antigenically distinct, the health ministry said, cross-reactions (resulting in false-positive/false-negative results) cannot be totally ruled out.

“Hence, the tests recommended by ICMR [for coronavirus] and that recommended by the concerned programme divisions (NVBDCP for vector borne diseases [Malaria, Dengue, Chikungunya]) and NCDC (Seasonal Influenza, Leptospirosis, Scrub Typhus)] needs to be followed,” the health ministry said.



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