Malerkotla boy dies of swine flu in city hospital

Manav Mander

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, August 9

A patient admitted to SPS Hospital died of swine flu today. The patient, a ten-year-old child, belonged to Malerkotla.

A resident of the city, who was admitted to a private hospital with suspected swine flu, also died last night. As the reports of his samples are yet to arrive, the department has not confirmed the cause of his death.

Dr Ramesh, district Epidemiologist, said the child from Malerkotla died of swine flu. Five patients belonging to Ludhiana district have lost their lives to swine flu to date.

Meanwhile, the elder brother of the other deceased said his brother had been suffering from fever for the past two days. He also had cough and cold. “We got him admitted to the hospital. He was suspected to be suffering from swine flu but the report have not arrived yet. So, the exact cause of his death is not known yet, he said.

Dr Ramesh said he was not aware of the second patient, as the latter was not confirmed to be a swine flu patient. In the summer season when the threat of dengue looms large, the increasing number of swine flu cases has taken the Health Department by surprise. “This is a very surprising phenomenon being witnessed not only in Ludhiana but also all over the country. Generally, cases of dengue are reported in the summer. But this year, the trend has changed and swine flu cases in the summer have taken everybody by surprise,” said Dr Ramesh. Swine flu generally spreads when maximum temperature goes down to 15 degrees Celsius. 

“On an average, we get five or six patients of suspected swine flu daily as against two or three patients of suspected dengue in a week,” said Dr Ramesh. It seems the strain of virus responsible for spreading swine flu has changed. “The department is conducting a study in this regard and as soon as the report is released, necessary action will be taken,” he added.

• Suspected: 66
• Positive: 17
• Deaths: 5

Symptoms

Fever (but not always), cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, watery and red eyes, body aches, headache, fatigue, diarrhoea, nausea and vomiting

Precautions

• Stay home if sick
• Wash hands thoroughly 
• Contain coughs and sneezes 
• Avoid contact

High-risk groups

• Those working in a hospital, nursing home or other long-term care facility
• Children
• People above 65 and older
• Pregnant women, those undergoing delivery (for two weeks) and those who have had pregnancy loss.
• Persons who have certain chronic medical conditions, including asthma, emphysema, heart disease, diabetes, neuromuscular disease, or kidney, liver or blood disease.