Three more people succumbed to swine flu in Andhra Pradesh's Kurnool district in the past two days, taking the death toll to 10 in the past two weeks. Officials said that the deceased were identified as 54-year-old Srinivasulu and 38-year-old Bhagyalakshmi who succumbed on Wednesday and 27-year-old Rajesh, who passed away on Tuesday.
All three persons were said to have been on ventilator after they were admitted to the Kurnool Government General Hospital before they passed away. With this, the total death toll has risen to 10 this month, from the district.
Earlier this week, a pregnant woman from Nandyal and a 69-year-old man from Panyam had died of swine flu. However, officials said that there was no reason for alarm.
Speaking to TNM at the time, District Medical and Health Officer (DMHO), Dr Prasad said, “We are conducting screening camps at all major bus stations in Kurnool; ie Kurnool, Adoni and Nandyal. They are functioning 24x7 at bus stations and also at railway stations. Similar camps are running at Srisailam and Mantrayalam, where there will be a huge influx of tourists. Required material has been distributed to all district and mandal-level hospitals.”
“We are storing all equipment that is required including N95 masks at community health centres, area hospitals and district hospital along with anti-viral drugs. The confirmation of cases is being conducted at the Kurnool Area Hospital itself with the help of the microbiology department,” he had said.
It should also be noted that while most experts state that swine flu is self-limiting, those at risk are the ones who have impaired immunity. This includes young children, the elderly, people with any other known underlying chronic health issues, and anyone on immunosuppressant drugs.
Swine flu is an infection caused by one of several Swine Influenza Viruses (SIV), with the H1N1 strain being the most common in India. The H1N1 virus spreads through direct contact, when you touch an infected surface or breathe droplets of coughs and sneezes in the air. The symptoms include cough, sore throat, joint pains and fever.