The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has announced an initiative to test all pregnant women residing in areas with active Zika virus transmission. This directive follows instructions from the Public Health Department, aiming to ensure the safety and health of expecting mothers in the region.
On Monday, PMC’s health department issued a notice to all zonal medical officers, hospital superintendents, and medical officers, mandating Zika virus testing for all pregnant women living within a five-kilometer radius of affected areas. Dr. Kalpana Baliwant, the health officer of PMC, confirmed the issuance of this directive.
Despite guidelines from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) for mandatory testing of all pregnant women in Zika-affected areas, a report by HT on July 12 revealed that only 5% of the pregnant women in these areas had been tested by PMC. This new initiative aims to rectify that gap.
“We aim to test as many expecting mothers as possible from active Zika virus transmission areas,” said Dr. Suryakant Devkar, assistant health officer of PMC. “Blood and urine samples from pregnant women will be sent to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) Pune for testing.”
Since June 20, PMC has reported 21 cases of Zika virus, including 10 pregnant women. Active transmission has been identified in eight ward offices: Karve Nagar-Warje, Hadapsar, Kothrud-Bavdhan, Aundh-Baner, Sinhagad Road, Nagar Road, Kondhwa-Yewalewadi, and Yerawada. Among the 2,408 pregnant women registered for antenatal care in these areas, only 167 (7%) have been tested so far.
Central guidelines stipulate that all pregnant women in Zika-affected areas should undergo two ultrasound examinations—one at 18-20 weeks and another at 28-30 weeks of gestation.
A suspected Zika case was reported on Monday involving a 23-year-old pregnant woman from Paud Phata. She exhibited symptoms like fever and rash and visited Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital after consulting a private clinic in Kothrud. Her samples are being sent to NIV for confirmation.
Dr. Kalpana Baliwant also reported that 11 samples from suspected patients, including 10 pregnant women, have been sent to NIV. The samples include eight from Kalas and one each from Pashan and Dahanukar Colony.
