Soumitra Chatterjee has new onset fever, raises cause for concern: Doctor

KOLKATA: Iconic Bengali actor and Dada Saheb Phalke awardee Soumitra Chatterjee, who is undergoing treatment for COVID-19 at a private hospital in the city, has new onset fever which has become a matter of concern for his doctors.

The 85-year-old thespian, who is presently not on any life support system, may require ventilation support to protect his airway if his present neurological condition does not improve, a senior doctor of the hospital treating him said.

"His neurological condition is as before, just like it was 48 hours ago.

He is barely arousable, drowsy, very jittery and confused," they said.

"We are still very hopeful because most of his organs are functioning normally and the corona part is also not very severe," he said adding an MRI conducted on him earlier in the day does not show any structural defect.

A team of 15 doctors are overseeing Chatterjee at the hospital.

The veteran actor was admitted to the hospital on Tuesday last week after testing positive for COVID-19 and had to be shifted to the ITU after his condition worsened on Friday evening.