Virology lab likely at IGIMS

PATNA: A team of France-based consultancy firm

Integrated Quality Laboratory Services

(IQLS) recently visited the

Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences

(

IGIMS

) here to inspect the site proposed for establishing a

virology lab

.

Assistant professor of IGIMS virology department Dr Nidhi Prasad said as there was no separate lab for virology test at the hospital, she had urged the officials of the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) in India and the US to establish a lab at the IGIMS. “Two lab experts from IQLS, France and a CDC official inspected the proposed site for the virology lab on the hospital campus. They shared a map for the same with us,” Dr Prasad said. IQLS works in collaboration with CDC in setting up laboratories.

IGIMS medical superintendent Dr Manish Mandal said talks with CDC were at an advance stage. “The relevant papers will be forwarded to the state government for approval,” she added.

The virology lab, if established, will enable further research to understand the cause of death of large number of children below 15 years of age in Muzaffarpur district in May and June every year since 2014.

A team of researchers from

National Centre for Disease Control

(India) and the

National Centre for Environmental Health

had conducted a study and linked the deaths of children to consumption of unripe litchis in empty stomach. The study had been published in a journal – The Lancet – in 2017. As per the study, the children had shown symptoms of acute encephalitis. The research team had arrived at the conclusion that naturally occurring toxins in litchi lowered the blood sugar levels, and skipping evening meals further worsened the condition and caused hypoglycaemia.

To prevent illness and reduce mortality in the region, the experts had recommended minimising litchi consumption, ensuring receipt of an evening meal and implementing rapid glucose correction for suspected illness. However, many researchers and doctors had rejected the claims of the study.

“The officials who visited the IGIMS were the ones who had conducted the study. Acute encephalitis syndrome can be caused due to chemical, viral and bacterial reasons. Most of the deceased children were malnourished and had consumed unripe litchis. However, some children below two years of age, who couldn’t consume litchi, had also died. Hence, many doctors had negated the claims of the study and the cause of deaths still remains a mystery,” Dr Prasad added.