With increasing seasonal diseases in Hyderabad, 12 Primary Health Centres (PHCs) across 100 urban slums of the city have seen a 30% increase in patient footfalls in August compared to the previous month. The total number of outpatient department (OPD) visits reported at these PHCs in August was 60,683.
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The PHCs run by city-based NGO, Helping Hands Foundation (HHF), have reported that infectious or tropical diseases accounted for 38.5% of the total OPD visits. Fever-free cases, presenting with symptoms such as body aches, cold and cough, made up 34% of the visits. Upper respiratory tract infections followed, constituting 28.7% of the cases. Acute gastroenteritis was responsible for 17% of the cases.
Among the infectious diseases, typhoid fever comprised 7%, while dengue accounted for 0.8%, suggesting a potential spike in cases in the coming months due to recent rains and flooding in several slums. Other conditions, such as chikungunya, urinary tract infections (UTIs), scabies, and tonsillitis, made up the remaining cases.
The data also showed that 28% of the affected patients were children between 1 and 10 years old, 14% were adolescents between 11 and 17 years, and 48% were adults. Most patients with infectious diseases were treated on an outpatient basis, while 12% required day-care or inpatient care during the month, a release noted.