Swine-flu claims 1: AP ill-equipped?

With no vaccinations available to tackle the Swine-flu epidemic in the major hospitals in the state, the Friday’s death of Apanna (30) who was being treated at Care Hospital in Visakhapatnam for four days, has spread panic all around.

Care Hospital authorities were trying to remove the body of Apanna from the corporate hospital premises immediately as this could spread more panic than the epidemic itself in the aftermath of the Swine-flu death.

According to the claims of Dr Jayakumari, district medical and health officer here, they are in control of the situation. “We recently conducted a meeting of urban medical and health officers and urged them to create awareness on swine flu, to help prevent an outbreak in the city. We are urging people with symptoms of cold and cough to avoid visiting crowded places as this can infect Swine-flu.”

The fear of the spread of Swine-flu increases as the monsoon sets in. The doctors have advised people against brushing off nagging cough and sniffling nose as ordinary cold. Any cold or cough persisting beyond 48 hours should be reported to the doctors, they suggested.

Even as reports of 16 Swine-flu deaths has the nation reeling, experts say that the monsoons can bring a relapse of the epidemic into the state too. 

A pregnant woman from Medak who was recently diagnosed with Swine-flu has left Hyderabad in a hurry.Dr Aftab Ahmad, a physician of Apollo Hospital says, “the chances of the virus surviving longer are higher in cold and wet climates. So there are chances that Swine-flu will spread more rapidly in the monsoons. As the virus is transmitted through droplet transmission, when people group together and one of them carries the virus, the public at large can be at a risk of contracting it.’’