The district health authorities of Dehradun have come on an alert mode after six cases of swine flu were confirmed in the district on Thursday. However, the swab report of a 21-year-old person who had died on Wednesday reportedly from swine flu has proved negative.
Of the six confirmed cases of the diseases on Thursday, four patients have been admitted at Mahant Indiresh Hospital while one each is getting treatment at Synergy Hospital and Himalayan Hospital Jolly Grant.
The chief medical officer (CMO), Dr S K Gupta assured that the health department has been on an alert mode to combat the disease.
He further said that the teams of Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme ( IDSP) have visited the houses of the patients on Thursday. The teams thoroughly examined the family members of the patients for symptoms of flu, he added.
Dr Gupta said that the medical officers have been asked to be cautious on suspected cases of the disease. He added that all the hospitals have adequate supply of Tami flu(medicine of swine flu) and triple layer masks.
The CMO said that since the disease spreads by droplet infection the people should cover their nose and face with handkerchief while sneezing or coughing and should regularly wash hands and face.
Swine Flu
Swine flu is a viral disease. Its virus is also called H1 N1. Its genetic analysis has shown that it has originated from the animals specially pigs. Hence it is called Swine flu. The virus spreads from person to person similar to that of seasonal influenza.
Categories of Swine flu
The swine flu patients are divided into three categories. In 'A' category, the patient suffers from mild fever and irritation in throat. The patients of this category should be isolated at home and require no test or medication. The patients of 'B' category are characterized by high fever and the patient need isolation and should be administered Oseltamivir (Tami flu) medicine.
The medical experts are of the view that if a patient is suffering from breathlessness, low Blood Pressure along with symptoms of A and B category he is put under the category 'C'. Such patients should be isolated, hospitalized and they should be administered Tami flu. They need to be tested for swine flu for confirmation.