Anugrah Narayan Medical College and Hospital (ANMCH) in Gaya has, after a gap of around 50 days, received patients suffering from suspected acute encephalitis syndrome.

In a report sent to ANMCH superintendent Dr Sitaram Prasad on Sunday, the head of the paediatrics department, Dr Ajoy Kishore Ravi, said the hospital has received four patients suffering from the syndrome since August 9.

The four children admitted to the hospital included Rajiv Kumar (18 months) of Padrama in Aurangabad district and six-year-old Gautam Kumar of Hunterganj in Jharkhand’s Chatra district.

Dr Prasad told The Telegraph that blood samples and the cerebro spinal fluid of the four patients have been sent to the pathological laboratory of the microbiology department, ANMCH.

He said the paediatrics department head has kept the children under observation suspecting that they were suffering from acute encephalitis syndrome. He, however, added that nothing concrete could be said till the arrival of the pathological reports.

The superintendent said a doctor has been deputed at the paediatrics ward for round-the-clock surveillance. “There is no shortage of medicines and the hospital has facilities of pathological tests,” Prasad said, adding that he visited the hospital on Sunday and the condition of the four children has improved.

Earlier this year, 20 children suffering from suspected acute encephalitis syndrome were admitted to ANMCH between May 28 and June 22 and 11 of them died. In 2011, the first case of acute encephalitis syndrome was reported at ANMCH on August 23. Till the last week of December, 2011, as many as 410 children were admitted to the hospital and 69 of them diagnosed Japanese Encephalitis positive. Between August 23 and December 31, 2011, altogether 94 children died in the hospital.

The report of fresh cases of the disease has now set alarm bells ringing. Health experts said with new cases of the disease being reported, there should be an effective surveillance programme that would include mass vaccination and fogging in the vulnerable areas. But neither mass vaccination nor fogging has been done in the areas.

State health department principal secretary Vyas Ji told The Telegraph over telephone from Patna that the Union health ministry has agreed to carry out a mass vaccination drive in Gaya and Aurangabad districts of Magadh division from November this year. He added that the Union health ministry has convened a meeting in New Delhi on August 22 to discuss planning and other aspects of the mass vaccination drive.

The state health department had earlier demanded 4.6 lakh vials of Japanese Encephalitis vaccines — three lakh for Gaya and 1.6 lakh for Aurangabad — to carry out vaccination of children below 15 years of age. “However, the vials have not been made available yet,” Vyas Ji said, adding that vaccination of Japanese encephalitis has been included in the routine immunisation programme only.

According to an action plan prepared to control spread of acute encephalitis syndrome and Japanese encephalitis cases, fogging and sprinkling of DDT and bleaching powder were going on in the rural areas. A special task force has been constituted to keep an eye on the situation at Patna Medical College and Hospital in the state capital, Sri Krishna Medical College and Hospital in Muzaffarpur and ANMCH.