Gujarat: Only 3 H3N2 cases, 77 H1N1 cases on record

AHMEDABAD: While the state-based general practitioners claim that most patients with fever, cough and cold symptoms are H3N2 infected, state health minister Rushikesh Patel said the state has just three H3N2 cases as of March 10.
The minister on Saturday said the state had 77 cases of H1N1 or swine flu, and there had been no case of mortality due to H3N2.
“This year, we recorded 80 seasonal flu cases, of which 77 were H1N1, and three were H3N2. There has been no rise in OPDs due to the influenza virus, and there has been daily monitoring of seasonal flu on the Germis portal,” said the health minister.
Patel said the state issued a notification on February 25 directing the health teams to take preventive actions, including keeping isolation wards at hospitals and maintaining a stock of essential medicines, ventilators, PPE kits and masks. “On March 11, training for contact survey of H1N1 was carried out for medical staff and treatment guidelines. Across the state, 13 government-run and 60 private labs have testing facilities for seasonal flu,” he said.
The health department officials said the patients should take a liquid diet, wash their hands frequently and wear masks as a precaution.