Tomato Flu Continues to Spread in India

The recently discovered ‘tomato flu’ continues its spread in India and has reached two more states. It was first detected in the southern state of Kerala in May and was recently detected in the neighboring state of Tamil Nadu, and in the eastern state of Odisha.

An article in Lancet Respiratory Medicine article detailed that the virus had infected 82 children under the age of five in Kerala by 26 July. The most recent cases have been reported of children as old as nine in Tamil Nadu and Odisha, even though the flu had only affected children younger than five previously.

While scientists are still not sure about the nature of the virus itself, it has been named ‘tomato flu’ because of the characteristic painful red blisters that it causes on the body. It is particularly highly contagious in children as it spreads through physical contact, including nappies, children putting things in their mouths, or touching unclean surfaces.

Doctors find it difficult to diagnose tomato flu because its symptoms are very similar to those of COVID-19, dengue fever, and chikungunya (the latter two are caused by mosquitoes and are common in India during the rainy season). Chikungunya is especially widespread in Kerala. Tomato flu could be a variant of these two viral infections instead of a different virus, as mentioned in the Lancet article.

It also read: “The rare viral infection is in an endemic state and is considered non-life-threatening; however, because of the dreadful experience of the COVID-19 pandemic, vigilant management is desirable to prevent further outbreaks”. 

“The virus could also be a new variant of the viral hand, foot, and mouth disease, a common infectious disease targeting mostly children aged one to five years and immunocompromised adults, and some case studies have even shown hand, foot and mouth disease in immunocompetent adults,” according to the article.

Dr. Suneela Garg, a senior health official in the Government of Delhi remarked, “I agree that chikungunya and dengue can leave children vulnerable to tomato flu because their immune systems are weaker. We don’t have any cases in Delhi yet and I am confident it won’t become a problem”.