Cases of H1N1 influenza are rising in Delhi, with the national Capital recording nearly 1,700 cases this season, prompting Union health minister JP Nadda to review the situation and preparedness measures on Friday.
“The situation is such right now that if we are testing a symptomatic patient, we find the virus to be H1N1. It is spreading fast but in healthy people symptoms are mild— sore throat, chest pain, runny nose— but we have also got patients who needed hospital admission with some even on ventilator. The preparedness of healthcare facilities in Delhi was also reviewed, including the availability of hospital beds, critical care facilities, and other essential supplies required to manage patients with seasonal influenza and severe respiratory illness. H1N1 flu is a type of influenza A virus. But the H1N1 flu strain from the pandemic became one of the strains that cause seasonal flu. Most people with the flu get better on their own, but high-risk persons—elderly people and those with comorbidities—tend to develop severe disease.
During the 2009-10 flu season, a new H1N1 virus began causing illness in humans. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the H1N1 flu to be a pandemic in 2009. In August 2010, WHO declared the pandemic over.
“The health minister emphasised the need for close monitoring of influenza trends and proactive preparedness to ensure early detection and timely clinical management of cases,” read the statement. Doctors in Delhi said hospitals have seen a spurt in H1N1 cases over the past couple of weeks. Those with serious symptoms are usually older people and those with some underlying medical condition,” GC Khilnani, chairman at Delhi’s PSRI Institute of pulmonary, critical care, and sleep medicine, said.
