No takers for surgical masks in Bangalore this year despite H1N1 cases

Bangalore saw a boom in the sale of surgical masks in September last year as the news of swine flu outbreak spread across the city, with some of the medical stores selling about 500 masks a day.

This year, even though the number of people affected by the disease has not come down, there is hardly any demand for the masks, say sources in the pharmacies.

“Last year, around this time, there was a mad rush for the masks. We used to get bulk orders from many schools and other firms. But this time, we have sold only less than 100 masks so far,” said G Rajendra Prasad, managing partner of Cash Pharmacy.

However, statistics available with the government show that the number of patients affected by H1N1 virus has not decreased. While about 1,440 swine flu cases were reported from the city last year, 1,378 cases have been reported till August this year.

“Last year, even healthy people used to buy masks. But now, I think they are less worried about the disease,” said Ragavendra R, owner of a medical shop.

Dr Sashidhar Buggi, director of Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases said, “Bangaloreans have realised that there is no point in panicking. Anyway, the surgical mask will not prevent swine flu.

Only N95 masks can stop the virus from affecting you. Moreover, many precautionary measures like vaccines are available in the market now.”