FAQ - Japanese Encephalitis

1. What is Japanese Encephalitis?

2. Why JE is called Zoonotic Disease?

3. What are signs and symptoms of JE?

4. How Japanese Encephalitis is transmitted?

5. Vectors of Japanese Encephalitis in India

6. How JE is diagnosed?

7. What are the early warning signals for predicting an outbreak of JE?

          The clues for an impending outbreak can be picked up from following.

• Prediction of high rainfall by the meteorological department, an unusual increase in the adult vector density.
• Relative increase in pig population and water frequenting birds should alert the local officers. Virus detected in the suspected animal hosts and in mosquitoes can also act as an indicator for warning a forthcoming outbreak.
• Epidemiological data for the last 3-5 years would indicate the trend of the diseases in the specific area.

8. What are the risk factors for JE outbreak in an area ? 
   • Increase in susceptible population.
   • High density of Culex mosquitoes.
   • Presence of amplifying hosts such as pigs, water birds in large numbers etc.
   • Paddy cultivation in large areas.

9. What is the treatment of Japanese Encephalitis?

10. Is there a vaccine for JAPANESE ENCEPHALITIS

11. What is the extent of problem of Japanese Encephalitis in India and control activities of JE?

12. Prevention and control of JE

13. Action taken by Govt. of India towards prevention & control of AES/JE

14. What is Veterinary Based Surveillance?

• By identifying the prevalence & density of pigs, ducks, and ardeid birds and detecting viral activity in susceptible hosts through veterinary surveillance which helps to track the rate of Haemagglutination Inhibition (HI) antibody carriers and the appearance of antibody from fresh infection as an index of the spread of JE virus in animal host. Veterinary-based surveillance is conducted with the help of animal husbandry department. Serum sample from these animals is randomly collected for serology to ascertain transmission of JE virus.

15. What are the Veterinary Research Institutes for screening for antibody carriers of pig, ducks and ardeid birds?
    
    • National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune.
    • Centre for Research in Medical Entomology (CRME), Madurai.
    • VBRI (Veterinary Biological Research Institute), Shanthinagar, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh.
    • Kyasanoor Forest Disease Laboratory, Shimoga, Karnataka.
    • Institute of Vector control and Zoonosis Hosur, Tamil NAdu.
    • Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI), Izatnagar, Bareilly, U.P.243122.
    • Diagnostic Research Laboratories, RWITC. Ltd. (Approved By Govt. of India), 6 Arjun Marg, Pune 411001, Maharashtra