Deyalsingh: Rat-borne disease may rise

HEALTH Minister Terrence Deyalsingh says after flooding there is expected to be an increase in cases of leptospirosis whether suspected or confirmed.

He was responding to an urgent question in the House on Friday about whether three suspected cases of leptospirosis reported by the Chief Medical Officer were linked to recent flooding (during the weekend of October 20).

Deyalsingh said the bacteria that causes leptospirosis has an incubation period between two and 30 days.

“At this point in time it is difficult or impossible to say if these cases that the CMO was speaking about was due to recent flooding.”

He said the disease is transmitted through broken skin via a bacteria found in rats, cattle, dogs and cats and can also be in soil and on tin cans.

“So it is impossible at this point in time to say conclusively whether it is due to flooding.”

Fyzabad MP Dr Lackram Bodoe asked if there were any reported deaths from leptospirosis in 2018, in general.

Deyalsingh said he had no confirmation at the time but he would find out and get back to the MP. He added after flooding in San Fernando last year there were about 14 suspected cases of leptospirosis.

“So it is not far fetched to make a link between the flooding and leptospirosis but you can get leptospirosis through regular gardening especially if your hand has a cut and you put your hand into the soil where rodents, cats, dogs have urinated. Because the bacteria stays there for a very long time as you well know.”

Barataria MP Dr Fuad Khan asked what other public health methods had been implemented to decrease post-flood disease outbreaks. Deyalsingh said it was being tackled from all areas and reported public health inspectors had done more than 17,000 site visits for food operators and homes and insect vector control personnel have gone in post-flood and done vector control to ensure cases of (mosquito-borne diseases) zika, dengue and chikungunya do not “explode.”

He also said the ministry has mounted community-based activities via loudspeaker and fliers to indicate to people in affected communities what they should expect and what they should do and how to work with the ministry. Mobile clinics have also been set up in many of the flood-affected areas such as St Helena, Madras Road and Greenvale.

“So we have tackled it from a policy perspective being driven by the RHAs.”

He also commended private sector physicians who did excellent work.

“So it was a team effort.”