Swine influenza cases on the rise in India

Labels: , , , , on Friday, 12 October 2012

New Delhi: The end of the monsoon season has once again resulted in a spurt of cases of swine influenza, also knows as swine flu, across India. Pune is the worse affected city in the country. 226 people were affected by the H1N1 infection killing 9 between June and September this year. According to reports, four people died in September alone in Pune. 

Swine flu is a respiratory infection. It exploits a weakened immune system to attack major organs, especially lungs. When it gets into the lungs, it can lead to pneumonia, which can be fatal. The flu can also cause secondary infections to the body leading to failure of vital organs and death.

The whooping cough vaccine is important for pregnant women, mainly because they can pass on their immunity to their babies, who will be most at risk in the first couple of months of their life before they are able to have the vaccine themselves.

Cases of whooping cough were prevalent in the 1950s, when it caused hundreds of deaths a year.

A vaccine was introduced and was extremely successful, but for reasons still being investigated, cases have started to rise again.

In Madhya Pradesh, over a hundred persons have tested positive for swine flu so far, with 19 persons dead so far this year. At Indore, a lady doctor in Indore was tested positive a week ago for H1N1 virus, authorities said. In Bhopal alone, the infection has claimed 10 lives. Indore, Ujjain and Gwalior account for six, two and one deaths respectively, sources said. Swine flu cases have also been reported from Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and other parts of the country. 


The flu virus spreads mainly from person to person through coughing, sneezing or talking to people with influenza. Its symptoms include unusual tiredness, severe headache, runny nose, sore throat, shortness of breath or cough, sudden loss of appetite, aching muscles, diarrhoea or vomiting. If you have flu-like symptoms, stay at home, get plenty of rest and use the prescribed pain killers. If flu stays for three days, see a doctor and undergo H1N1 test.

NAGPUR: A two-year old was taken to the doctor as he was suffering from fever and coughing continually. The doctor suspected the little one was suffering from swine flu and asked the parents to get him tested at a government authorized centre. The parents hesitated to go to the government hospital and said they would take a second opinion. Two days later, the child passed away with the doctor still telling them he was sure it had been suffering from swine flu.

A woman from a village in Katol consulted a doctor from the city for a fever that was not subsiding despite medications. Being weekend, she could not get screened before two days. So, the doctor gave her some antibiotics. Three days later, the fever had subsided. City doctors believe that the number of swine flu victims with the government may be less than the actual incidence of the disease. They say the similarity of the symptoms to other viral infections, the increased immunity against H1N1 and delay in going to the government authorized screening centre are among the reasons for this.Pregnant women urged to have flu jab and whooping cough vaccine. 


PUNE: The monsoon season saw a gradual rise in the number of swine flu cases and casualties, with September presenting a grim scenario. While 226 people contracted the H1N1 infection and nine people succumbed to it between June and September, the virus infected 130 people and killed four in September alone.

During Ganesh festival, the district administration and the state health department had categorically asked people to avoid crowded places, in view of H1N1's highly contagious nature. But citizens did not pay heed and moved about without taking any precautions.

"Since the beginning of October, the virus has infected 28 people and killed three, including a pregnant woman. Currently, the condition of four more patients with swine flu, including an eleven-month-old baby, is critical and they are all on ventilator support, 

Doctors have attributed the unexpected surge in swine flu cases in Pune this month to wide fluctuations in temperature. Cold nights and hot afternoons help proliferate influenza viruses, they say. More swine flu cases have been recorded in Pune since the start of this month, causing concern to both doctors and the general public.

Since April this year, the virus has claimed 19 lives and infected 391 people. Among the 19 who died of swine flu in Pune city, eight were from outside the municipal limits of Pune city. As many as 130 people contracted the infection and six succumbed to the contagion in April. The virus transmission dropped in May when only six people had caught the infection and there was no casualty.



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