Two more children in Bihar's Muzaffarpur district on Sunday succumbed to acute encephalitis syndrome (AES) as officials asserted that afflictions and casualties had begun to dwindle with the onset of rains.

The deaths were reported from the S K Medical College and Hospital, where 431 children, including two in the past 12 hours, have been admitted for AES treatment since June 1, according to figures released by the district administration.

The total number of AES patients who have died in this hospital is 110.

'There is a perceptible decline in the number of children who are being admitted with brain fever as also the number of deaths,' hospital superintendent Sunil Kumar Shahi said. 'It has always been observed that AES strikes at the peak of summer and the outbreak halts with the onset of rains.'

Two fresh cases have been registered, one on Saturday and another on Sunday, Shahi said.

The health department put the total number of AES casualties across 20 districts at 152.

These include the 130 deaths in two Muzaffarpur hospitals, which have been admitting AES patients from nearly half a dozen districts in its proximity.

Experts attribute the deaths to hypoglycemia which affects malnourished children below the age of 15 and it is said to be triggered by consumption of unripe lychees -- a fruit in abundance in Bihar. The fruit contains a high concentration of a toxin that causes blood-sugar levels to fall sharply.