The health department officials collected samples of five more suspected swine flu patients in the district on Monday. The cases of swine flu are continuing to emerge in the State capital causing discomfiture to the health officials who were hoping that recent surge in temperature would reduce the prevalence of the disease.
On Monday samples of three patients admitted in Himalayan Institute Hospital Trust (HIHT) Jollygrant were sent to National Centre of Disease Control (NCDC) for confirmation of swine flu, similarly samples of two patients from Doon hospital were also sent to NCDC. Incidentally, no report of the samples sent earlier arrived from NCDC on Monday.
The district in-charge of Integrated Disease Surveillance Programe (IDSP), Dr Madan Bonal told The Pioneer that the department has collected samples of 229 swine flu suspected patients in the district since January this year. He said that samples of 150 patients have proved negative for the disease and report of 20 patients is awaited by the department. Dr Bonal said that samples of 59 patients have proved positive for the disease out of which six patients have died from the disease.
Two female patients who were getting treatment at HIHT died on Sunday putting the health officials of district in a tizzy. On Monday, Dr Bonal himself visited the hospital to take stock of the situation. The health department informed that one of the women who died on Sunday was a resident of Rishikesh; her sample had proved positive for swine flu; while the other woman was a resident of Muradabad district and the report of her sample is yet to arrive from NCDC Delhi.
The spate in number of swine flu cases is causing trouble to the health department as it was banking on weather condition to control the spread of the disease. The virus of swine flu normally gets subdued at higher temperature. Worried over increase in incidences of the disease, the CM Harish Rawat asserted on Monday that the State has adequate supply of swine flu medicines.