Health officials are caught unawares even as CM himself remains in the dark about three deaths in Karnataka since Jan.
The deadly Influenza-A (H1N1) virus has struck again claiming the lives of two in Bangalore and one in Chikkaballapur since January. The disease has caught the state health department on the wrong foot, even as health officials kept chief minister DV Sadananda Gowda in the dark over the deaths.
According to the health and family welfare services data, since January 48 persons have tested H1N1-positive in Bangalore alone while the rest nine are from other parts of the state. The figures include the three who have died.
Although the individuals testing positive have been isolated, what has baffled the health authorities is the disease making a comeback during summer when it is widely known to strike in the winter months. Now, they are worried whether the virus has mutated to strike in the summer months too; and a hint of panic among the health officials is noticeable considering the absence of any credible research on mutation of the virus anywhere in India.
Nagaraj BG, District Nodal Surveillance Officer of Mysore (where 11 cases have been detected and four tested positive), expressed serious concern over the disease striking during summer. He said: “There may be mutation in the virus. But we are taking all precautions and hoarding Tamiflu tablets. We have given standing instructions to all hospitals to ensure that they have ventilators ready as the flu is bound to drastically increase risk of Pneumonia also.”
Apart from those detected positive in Bangalore, one has tested positive in Chikkaballapur, four in Kolar, three in Mandya, and one in Shimoga.
Expressing shock, chief minister Sadananda Gowda pleaded ignorance about H1N1-related deaths in the city and Chikkaballapur. He said he would urgently call for a meeting with health ministry officials and initiate necessary steps to stop H1N1 from spreading.
Shockingly, Dr TS Cheluvaraju, Joint Director, (Communicable Diseases), Health Department, who was himself unaware of the latest deaths, merely said that of the 71 people affected by H1N1, 69 had already been discharged. But on being informed about the latest, he said: “We are geared up to meet any eventuality. We have already advised the BBMP and zonal health officers in various districts to take preventive measures and make arrangements to treat the people suffering from Influenza-A. There is no shortage for Tamiflu vaccines (to keep H1N1 at bay) in Karnataka. We have three lakh Tamiflu vaccines.”
Dr Chandrasekhar Malagi, Joint Director, health department, who was assigned to monitor the H1N1 cases, said the number of affected has dropped when compared with 2,552 in 2010 and 108 in 2011. But he refrained from referring to the 57 cases testing positive only in the first three months of 2012. “We have succeeded in creating awareness among the public on precautions to be taken,’’ he said.
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