ICUs fast filling up in Coimbatore

COIMBATORE: Beds in intensive care units (ICU) are fast-filling up in the city, an alarming fact which indicated that Covid-19 patients are delaying seeking medical help. Sources said over 50 per cent of ICU beds (50 to 60 beds) in the Coimbatore Medical College and Hospital were occupied while all 14 ICU beds at the ESI Hospital were occupied.

The situation is similar in private hospitals. As per the data available on the State government's dashboard, 123 out of the 132 ICU beds available in 26 private hospitals in Coimbatore were occupied as on Sunday.

CMCH Dean A Nirmala said that most patients were reporting to the hospital with low oxygen saturation level, and difficulty in breathing. "Late hospitalisation is a cause for concern. There are chances for RT-PCR tests returning negative results seven days after a person is infected. By that time, the patients would have suffered lung damage, which only a CT scan would reveal. So it is important to undergo a test immediately after one develops symptoms," she said.

Dean of ESI Hospital M Raveendran said the admission of Covid-19 patients to ICU depends upon their health condition. "The patients would be admitted in ICU only when CT scan results are positive, or when their oxygen saturation level is low," he said.