Mysterious ‘brain-damaging disease’ striking kids kills 17 as hundreds quarantined over fears ‘toxin’ will spread

A MYSTERIOUS brain-damaging illness has claimed the lives of 17 radical - 13 of them children.

The deaths occurred successful India-administered Jammu and Kashmir, prompting authorities to quarantine hundreds of radical arsenic they raced to place the cause.

Meanwhile, successful the occidental Indian authorities of Maharashtra, 5 radical person died successful a suspected outbreak of Guillain-Barré syndrome - a uncommon neurological illness that tin origin musculus weakness and paralysis.

Residents of the distant colony of Badhaal successful Jammu's Rajouri country archetypal started falling sick with a mysterious unwellness successful December past year, according to section media reports.

The deaths took spot betwixt December 7 and January 19 this year.

Authorities declared the colony a containment portion successful precocious January and quarantined 230 people, the Press Trust of India (PTI) quality bureau reported.

All of the victims had harm to the encephalon and tense system, Amarjeet Singh Bhatia, who heads Rajouri's authorities aesculapian college, said.

"The wintertime vacations person besides been cancelled to woody with the aesculapian alert situation," PTI quoted Bhatia arsenic saying.

The victims were members of 3 related families.

Six of the children who died were siblings, aged betwixt 7 to 15 years.

Health officials said victims of the mysterious unwellness initially showed symptoms akin to food poisoning but abruptly mislaid consciousness, according to the BBC.

The archetypal 5 patients - including 4 children - were admitted to infirmary with vomiting and diarrhoea, portion others complained of sore throats and breathing problems, Dr Bhatia said.

The national authorities launched an probe pb by constabulary officers, pathologists and different specialists, who questioned dozens of radical successful a effort to pinpoint the origin of the brain-damaging disease.

Health curate Jitendra Singh saying an archetypal probe suggested the deaths were "not owed to immoderate infection, microorganism oregon bacteria but alternatively a toxin".

PTI quoted Mr Singh arsenic saying: "There is simply a agelong bid of toxins being tested. I judge a solution volition beryllium recovered soon.

"Additionally, if determination was immoderate mischief oregon malicious activity, that is besides being investigated."

Initial investigations indicated that depletion of contaminated nutrient and h2o whitethorn person been to blame.

Residents of the colony were asked not to portion h2o from a section outpouring aft a trial illustration showed it contained traces of pesticides.

A much caller section media study suggests the enigma unwellness could person been caused by organophosphate poisoning - caused by the assemblage reacting to a radical of chemic compounds recovered successful pesticides, insecticides and herbicides.

According to NDTV, an antidote to counteract organophosphate poisoning had been administered to immoderate patients successful hospital, seeming to enactment well.

Suspected Guillain-Barré syndrome outbreak

In Maharashtra, astatine slightest 5 radical person died successful what's thought to beryllium an outbreak of the paralysing nervus illness Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS).

Most of the cases person been detected successful the metropolis of Pune, with 163 sickened.

State authorities officials said astatine slightest 21 patients are connected ventilator enactment and 48 were admitted to intensive care.

GBS is simply a uncommon autoimmune condition, wherever the immune strategy attacks peripheral nerves.

It leads to symptoms similar numbness, tingling and musculus weakness that tin advancement to paralysis.

With treatment, much radical tin afloat retrieve from the condition.

But the disease's mortality complaint ranges betwixt 3 and 13 per cent, depending connected however terrible it is and the prime of treatment.

While astir cases of GBS astir the satellite travel from under-cooked poultry, it tin besides dispersed done contaminated water, experts say.

The outbreak successful Pune is being traced to a pathogen called campylobacter jejuni, a communal origin of origin of foodborne infections and 1 of the astir communal drivers of GBS crossed the world.

That being said, it's inactive uncommon for radical to make GBS aft catching the bacterial infection.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), lone astir 1 successful each 1,000 radical with campylobacter corruption gets GBS.

The World Health Organisation announced it was helping wellness authorities respond to the suspected outbreak, grooming them successful "conducting ‘active lawsuit searches’ successful the assemblage surviving successful the affected areas to guarantee each suspected lawsuit is identified, diagnosed and treated".

Authorities accidental they person examined much than 60,000 houses, picked up 160 h2o samples for tests, and asked radical to portion boiled h2o and devour fresh, decently cooked food.