Seven people have died of scrub typhus in Salyan’s Darma Rural Municipality in the past month, while the number of people testing positive for the bacterial infection has risen to 114.

Local health authorities are stepping up testing and treatment as the number of cases continues to rise.

Fifty-four people tested positive for scrub typhus during testing conducted over two days this week at health facilities in wards 1 and 5.

At the Darmakot Health Post in ward 1 on Tuesday, 222 people sought treatment and 160 were tested using rapid test kits. Thirty-seven tested positive, according to Yagya Bahadur Basnet, chief of the rural municipality’s health section.

At the health facility in Dhakadam in ward 5 on Wednesday, 245 people sought treatment, of whom 181 were tested. Seventeen tested positive, Basnet said.

The latest results have taken the total number of people testing positive for scrub typhus in the municipality to 114. Sixty positive cases had been identified during a health camp conducted in late August and through subsequent testing at local health facilities.

Authorities do not have records of residents who may have travelled outside the district for testing, Basnet said.

The two-day health camp was jointly organised by the Salyan District Health Service Office and the rural municipality’s health section to identify and treat scrub typhus cases.

Although the camp has ended, testing will continue as the number of cases rises. The Epidemiology and Disease Control Division in Kathmandu sent 1,000 test kits and medicines to the rural municipality on Wednesday, and health workers will be mobilised to continue testing once the supplies arrive, Basnet said.

Residents of ward 1 have been affected the most, although cases have also been reported in other wards, he said.

Scrub typhus is transmitted through the bite of infected chiggers, tiny mites commonly found in vegetation. The disease can be treated successfully when detected early, but the rising number of cases remains a concern, said Dr Abhinit Chaudhary, who works in Darma Rural Municipality.

Health workers will now go beyond temporary testing camps and visit households to test people with symptoms or those suspected of having the infection, Chaudhary said.

Authorities have been urging residents to wear boots that cover their legs up to the knees and gloves while working with grass and vegetation, and to keep their surroundings clean. But many residents have not followed the advice, Chaudhary said.

Severe scrub typhus can affect vital organs including the heart, liver and kidneys, putting people with chronic illnesses at greater risk, he said.

Tara Rijal, an official at the Salyan District Health Service Office, said a team including doctors from the district hospital had completed the two-day camp, but the office would continue to support the municipality.

Fewer scrub typhus cases were detected during testing in ward 5 than in ward 1, Rijal said.