Jodhpur highly vulnerable to swine flu

JODHPUR: With the death of 22 persons in January, the city has become highly vulnerable to the H1N1 virus.
According to the data available with the S N Medical College, as many as 17 persons died of swine flu from September till December. And in January, the flu cases increased significantly.
S N Medical college principal Dr Arvind Mathur said majority of patients had died within two to 48 hours after being brought to hospitals and even before their swab testing report being issued.He said people should not be negligent if they suffer from swine flu-like symptoms.
Dr Mathur also said the low temperature and low humidity provide a favourable environment for the virus to spread. Mostly, pregnant women are getting infected with the virus. Out of the 45 deaths reported in the recent past, 20 were pregnant women. Among the 22 deaths reported in January, one belonged to Jodhpur city, 11 to Jodhpur rural, five were from Barmer, three from Jaisalmer and one each from Pali and Nagaur.
Taking note of the situation, senior officials of the state medical and health department visited Jodhpur on January 26 and 27. They discussed the issue with the hospital and the college administrations. A team of two doctors from SMS Hospital has also visited the hospitals here on the direction of the state government and has submitted its report to the government.
The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and the Ayurved University have extended helping hands to curb the disease. Dr Mathur said the issue has been discussed with the AIIMS director and he has assured to come out with some solution as to how they can be instrumental in checking this trend. "We have also spoken to the Ayurved University. They also have assured help," Mathur said.
Meanwhile, the facility for testing of the swab samples has been made available at the medical college and the Desert Medical Research Centre (DMRC). "We are facing the deficiency of the test kits. When our stock of the kits exhaust, we send the samples to DMRC," he said.
Though most of the cases are coming from the rural areas, the district administration has not yet put in adequate efforts to identify the patients and get them treated in their respective areas to avoid delay. The district collector, who also has taken charge of the divisional commissioner of Jodhpur, is not available for comment.