Two people from Karnataka have succumbed to Monkey fever this year. The first fatality was reported in Hosanagar taluk of Shivamogga district on January 8 wherein an 18-year-old girl succumbed to the virus. The second fatality was reported at Manipal in Udupi district when a 79-year-old man from Sringeri taluk in Chikkamagaluru died in a private hospital. A total of 49 cases have been reported from the state, news agency PTI reported on Sunday. The maximum number of cases are from Uttara Kannada district followed by Shivamogga and Chikkamagaluru district.
"We have taken all precautionary measures and are working in close coordination with the officials of the districts where cases of KFD have been reported to prevent its spread. As of now, there is no vaccination available for the disease, so we need to be extra cautious. Awareness is being created about the precautionary measures to be taken to prevent the infection from spreading further. The vaccination provided earlier was found ineffective. So, we have approached ICMR for the vaccination," a senior health official told PTI.
