No Tamiflu for healthy people: WHO
POSTED August 21, 2009 - 18:07 | POSTED BY Priya Markanda
Last edited by Harpreet Bhagrath on August 21, 2009 - 18:23
In a new advice issued to the health officials, the U.N. agency told the doctors that they don't need to prescribe Tamiflu to healthy people having mild to moderate cases of H1N1 influenza.
WHO said that the drug should be used to treat people in risk groups contracting the virus. This includes children less than five years of age, pregnant women, people over the age of 65 and those with other health problems like heart disease, diabetes or HIV.
The new advice contradicts the government policies like those in Britain that has been giving out Tamiflu drug to all suspected cases of swine flu.
Dead count 48 in India
The report submitted by the health ministry Friday reported India's 48th death.
Earlier today, the state of Tamil Nadu reported its second swine flu fatality of a 47-year-old man, falling victim to the dreaded influenza at a government hospital in its capital.
General Hospital Dean Mohana Sundaram informed that the man was admitted to the hospital with flu-like symptoms on Aug. 13, and was advised to take Tamiflu tablets but he left without informing hospital authorities after giving his throat samples for test.
Thursday witnessed the highest number of deaths (10) so far recorded in a single day. In the past 24 hours, four more deaths were reported from the state of Karnataka, two each in Delhi, Gujarat and Pune.
Despite the measures to check its spread, and break the contamination cycle, almost 160 fresh cases were reported from across the country yesterday, taking the tally of those affected by the disease to 2,401 till Thursday.
Vikram Sharma, 25, succumbed to the influenza at 11.15 pm Thursday at Sassoon Hospital in Pune. He was admitted on Aug. 9 and had tested positive for H1N1 virus. Earlier, 27-year-old Dipti Pawar, died at the same hospital. She was admitted in a critical condition on Aug. 16, after being referred by a private hospital.
In the state of Karnataka, two women, Krishnaveni, 45, and Kalpana, 36, died in different hospitals on Aug. 17, while N Prema, 23, succumbed to the influenza on Aug. 16. The other victim, Edward Mohan, 45, died in another hospital Wednesday, director Health and Family Welfare Usha Vasunkar told.
