Of the 64 admitted patients, 15 (23.4 per cent) are unvaccinated and 5 (7.8 per cent) have taken one dose of Covid vaccines. The remaining 44 (68.75 per cent) patients are fully vaccinated. (File)Amid the ongoing debate about making masks mandatory again in the city in the wake of rising Covid-19 cases, data from the Seven Hills Hospital, Marol, the only civic body-run dedicated Covid hospital, has shown that 50 per cent of their patients are below the age of 45 years with higher mobility. Doctors have voiced the need for citizens to mask up as this young infected group may turn into spreaders. Of the 64 patients undergoing treatment at Seven Hills Hospital as of Friday, 32 are above the age of 45 years, while 26 patients are between 18 and 45 years of age. Six more patients are below eight years of age.
With complete relaxation of the Covid-19 restrictions in April and the gradual flattening of the pandemic curve, the younger population in the city dropped its guard. Due to higher mobility of the younger population, the infection rate is equally prevalent among them as it is among the elderly with comorbidities.
“The younger population has higher immunity because of which the infection remains mild. However, what is of concern is that these people may end up infecting the elderly citizens at home,” Dr Avinash Supe, in-charge of the Covid-19 death committee, said, adding that, “They need to adhere to Covid appropriate behaviour or else, they may become spreaders as seen during the second and third waves.” In a recent meeting with CM Uddhav Thackeray, the city’s Covid-19 task force advised to make masking mandatory in enclosed and crowded surroundings such as movie theatres, offices, pubs and restaurants, among other public places.
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Unlike the general demographic infection pattern, the admission of female patients above the age of 45 years was slightly higher than male at the hospital. For instance, compared to 15 males, 17 female patients in the age group were admitted to the hospital. Doctors attribute it to low immunity and pregnancy.
“People, especially pregnant women, need to focus on nutrituous food and their immunity. They need to get vaccinated to avoid the severity of infection,” said a senior doctor from Seven Hills Hospital.
Of the 64 admitted patients, 15 (23.4 per cent) are unvaccinated and 5 (7.8 per cent) have taken one dose of Covid vaccines. The remaining 44 (68.75 per cent) patients are fully vaccinated.
As of Friday, only six patients above the age of 45 years were on oxygen support. There were no patients on ICU or ventilator at the hospital. Data from the hospital showed that of the admitted patients, 27 have comorbidities and the remaining 37 do not have any underlying health issues. “As known, the vaccines don’t save a person from an infection but it helps to contain the severity of infection…There is no need to panic,” Dr Shashank Joshi, member of the city’s Covid-19 task force, said.
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