GBS in Pune: Water contamination confirmed as reason behind spike in cases

National Institute of Virology links contaminated water to spike in Guillain-Barré Syndrome in Pune, recommends preventive measures. File
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The National Institute of Virology (NIV) confirmed contaminated water as the main cause of the spike in Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) in parts of Pune. Four new sources were found contaminated on Thursday (February 6, 2025), making this a a total of 37 sources. One more death was reported, bringing the toll to six.

Under the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme, the Public Health Department has so far collected 3,868 water samples from different parts of the city and sent them to the Public Health Laboratory for chemical and biological analysis. Among the samples, 37 water sources were found contaminated. A total of 80 serum samples have been sent to NIMHANS, Bengaluru for Antiganglioside Antibodies testing.

The NIV has suggested that the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) collect two litres of water samples instead of the 100 millilitres for testing and storing for some time. Besides, it has recommended collecting two samples of the stool of GBS patients, It has also recommended that PMC provide chlorinated water to every household.

In a day, three new patients with GBS were diagnosed, raising the numbers to 173 suspected patients. Of these, 140 patients were diagnosed with GBS, 55 are in ICU, 21 are on ventilators, and 72 have been discharged. 

Of the 34 patients from Pune MC, 87 were from newly added villages in the PMC area, 22 were from Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC), 22 were from Pune Rural, and eight were from other districts.

The State’s health department is implementing preventive and control measures. In house-to-house surveillance activities, 45,574 houses in Pune MC, 23,179 houses in PCMC, and 13,191 houses in Pune rural areas have been surveyed (total 81,944).