Short Communication
Year: 2021 | Month: December | Volume: 11 | Issue: 12 | Pages: 162-166
DOI: https://doi.org/10.52403/ijhsr.20211222
Management of Acute Encephalitis Syndrome Endemic during COVID-19 Pandemic in India
Praveen Kumar1, Manish Taywade2
1India Meteorological Department, Ministry of Earth Sciences, New Delhi, India
2Department of Community Medicine & Family Medicine, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhubaneswar, India
Corresponding Author: Manish Taywade
ABSTRACT
The second wave of COVID-19 has worst impacted the country like India. However, the third wave is much predicted and may be infection among the children at risk. The endemic of diseases that outbreak from time to time in particular regions of India have shown several challenges to the health system in the past. The most likely endemic is Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) for few states of India that is reported during the pre-monsoon and post-monsoon season. However, AES had the highest chances of being found in pediatric age only with very few exceptions. The symptoms are confusing for diagnosing COVID-19 patients, and a great fear that the symptoms may overlap with AES. The sudden outbreak of AES during the current COVID-19 pandemic may intersect the demand for health resources, oxygen and isolated beds. The common insistence among the AES and COVID-19 patients will be oxygen demands, wards-bed (in NICU, PICU) and drugs. Hence, early preparedness is of utmost demand, simultaneously strengthening health infrastructures in this aspect is obvious.
Key words: Acute Encephalitis Syndrome, AES, COVID-19 pandemic in India.