More women in the city died of H1N1 than men

Swine flu cases in Ahmedabad went down in September compared to August but women accounted for more deaths due to the virus than men. This year, a total of 1,942 cases of H1N1 have been reported in the city, out of which 96 died. Of these 57 were women.

August saw the the highest number of cases at 1,711, and 70 deaths. But with the mercury hovering above 35 degrees Celsius and rain abating in September, the cases are under control. "There is some respite when you look at the number of cases this month. Still we are carrying out awareness campaigns across the city," said Dr Bhavin Solanki, in-charge medical officer of health, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation. He added that a total of 96 deaths were reported in the city this calendar year.

According to the doctors, there is no specific reason for the difference, except that women have lower immunity. "Generally speaking, resistance among females is less compared to males. Also, the deaths reported have some or the other co-morbidity factor. That is, people suffering with some diseases get affected with the new virus, and their condition worsens,"added Dr Solanki.

Dr Pravin Garg, senior physician, concurred, "Resistance power of women is comparative less than that of males. So if females encounter such a serious virus, they tend to get affected more than males."

"As this is an airborne disease, the elderly, children amd women who are pregnant are more prone to it. Precautions are a must," he said.