Suspected swine flu patient dies

Tribune News Service

Patiala, August 22

The death of a 30-year-old Ludhiana resident showing swine flu-like symptoms at Government Rajindra Hospital has spread panic in the city. Earlier, two children (a four-year-old child from Bhadson and two-year-old child from Rajpura) reportedly died of flu at the PGI, Chandigarh.

The patient, Sukhwinder Singh (30), from Jasowal village in Ludhiana had been unwell for the past four days and had been shifted to Rajindra Hospital from a Ludhiana hospital yesterday night. He complained of breathlessness, chest pain, cold, cough and fall of blood pressure, and doctors were treating him for flu-like symptoms.

A team of health officials reached the spot and collected the sample which had been sent to the PGI for confirmation. Notably, a total of six cases of swine flu have been reported in Patiala in the past one month.

District epidemiologist Gurmeet Singh said the health department had made adequate arrangements to ensure that the disease does not spread and all affected patients get the best of treatment. He said the department had issued guidelines to all hospitals to make arrangements and set up isolation wards. All such cases have to be reported to the civil surgeon office.

Swine flu (H1N1) categories

Category-A

Patients with mild fever plus cough and sore throat with or without body ache, headache, diarrhoea and vomiting will be categorised as category-A. The patients should be monitored for their progress and reassessed in 24 to 48 hours by the doctor. No testing of the patient for H1N1 is required

Category-B

In addition to all signs and symptoms mentioned under category-A, if the patient has high-grade fever and severe sore throat.

Children less than five years of age, pregnant women, persons aged 65 years or older, patients with lung, heart, liver, kidney diseases, blood disorders, diabetes, neurological disorders, cancer and HIV/AIDS, patients on long-term cortisone therapy. No test for H1N1 is required for Category-B (i) and (ii)

Category-C

In addition to the signs and symptoms of both A and B categories, if the patient has one or more of the following:

Breathlessness, chest pain, drowsiness, fall in blood pressure, sputum mixed with blood, bluish discolouration of nails, irritability among small children, refusal to accept feed, worsening of underlying chronic conditions