Hyderabad: Swine flu positive woman delivers in unconscious state

HYDERABAD: In a first, a nine-month pregnant woman suffering from swine flu delivered a baby in the swine flu ward at the state-run Gandhi Hospital, while she was unconscious and on ventilator support. The 27-year-old Fatima was admitted to the hospital in an unconscious condition with respiratory failure on March 28.
She had been refused admission by a few private hospitals and was quoted a sum of Rs 20 lakh without any guarantee by another, before being brought to the Gandhi Hospital.
While in majority of the cases of pregnant women contracting the dreaded swine flu virus, women succumb during the course of treatment, this ‘high risk case’ and ‘precious pregnancy’ as termed by doctors both was saved.
Upon admission, a team of pulmonologists and a team of gynaecologists simultaneously started their efforts to save the mother as well as the baby. "Instead of shifting the mother to the labour room, our team of gynaecologists led by Dr Renuka, from health department (along with her team), decided to carry out the delivery in the swine flu ward, putting their own lives at risk too. The delivery happened on March 30 afternoon and the baby was free of swine flu," said Dr P Shravan Kumar, superintendent, Gandhi Hospital.
The mother and baby were discharged from the hospital on Friday.