Hyderabad govt hospital on alert as viral flu cases rise

Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], March 7 (ANI): Government Fever Hospital saw a rise in viral flu including influenza-like symptoms and got around 600 to 800 cases per day in the last week, said the Superintendent of the hospital.

Superintendent of Government Fever Hospital Shankar said, “Here at the Government Fever Hospital we got around 600 to 800 cases per day in the last week. All cases are simple, like runny nose, headache, body pains, abdominal pain, vomiting and loose motions.”

Shankar also stated that Oseltamivir tablets is given for swine flu and are already available in all government hospitals. It is also available in medical shops and private hospitals.

“Generally viral fever will subside within one week. If it’s more than one week, it’s not a viral fever. Swine flu cases are mostly seen in November, December and January as the temperature is low. Once the summer season starts, the virus cannot survive,” he added.

The Superintendent further stated that in regard to viral flu, they got around 800 to 1000 cases on Monday.

“The flu shot vaccine is available even now. Everyone is advised to take this once a year. It does not have any side effects. All vaccines might have mild side effects. We have to take some precautions like avoiding handshakes and frequently touching our nose and mouth. Use proper hand wash and wash your hands every time whenever you touch some object,” he added.

He said, “Swine flu is the only type of influenza now and already the government has taken alert and given some instruction to all the hospitals to alert increase in some seasonal cases and availability of drugs, availability of tests and isolation wards. We are even ready to face if the number of cases increases. At the moment, it is not increasing and we are just on alert.”