Swine flu gets virulent, continues to claim lives

The insidious virus has created a scare in where 4 confirmed swine flu deaths have been reported during the last 36 hours.

Marathwada region reels
The Marathwada region is one of the five regions in Maharashtra state of India. The region comprises eight districts of Jalna, Aurangabad, Parbhani, Hingoli, Nanded, Latur, Osmanabad and Beed.

Of the latest deaths, 1 death was reported from Aurangabad while 3 deaths were reported from Latur. The death in Aurgangabad occurred at the government medical college and hospital (GMCH).

At present, 4 confirmed swine flu patients and 5 other suspected cases are being treated at the GMCH.

"Since April this year, swine flu has claimed 13 people in Latur division alone," said Ashfaq Ahmed, assistant director of health services, Latur.

PL Gattani, resident medical officer at GMCH said that the hospital had received 6 reports from the National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune. Five of these were positive, including that of Savita Thakur, who breathed her last on Wednesday.

42-year-old Savita Thakur (42) was a resident of Shahgad in Ambad taluka.
The other deceased are Sanjay Shevale , a resident of Dhavalapurin in Badnapur taluka, Chandrakant Thorat, a resident of Kannad and Ravindra Phuljhade , a resident of Chikhli in Buldhana district.

Gattani averred that the hospital had sufficient stock of Tamiflu and the vaccine was already being given to the high-risk groups.

Precaution is the key
The NIV has advised people not to throw caution to the wind and take all precautionary measures to thwart the spread of the dreaded influenza.

"The vaccine is definitely advised. However, thinking that once vaccinated, there is no need to be cautious is absolutely wrong. People should follow all precautionary measures even after vaccination.” said A C Mishra, director, NIV.

“The vaccines are found to be giving immunity to 90 per cent of people who have undergone vaccination. However, a few people may catch the infection even after taking the shot. Hence, taking all precautions is always advised," added Mishra.

Data available with the institute revealed that the contamination rate of swine flu had spiked to 40 percent this year from the 20-25 percent last year.

"We, at the NIV, have been receiving over 200 throat swab samples from all over the state every day. Many of them come from far-flung areas which remained unscathed last year. There is an increase in cases as well as an increase in the infection rate," Mishra said.