Swine Flu reaches Assam

Two in State test positive for H1N1, countrywide toll crosses 1,000

By Our Staff Reporter

Guwahati, March 1: With swine flu wreaking havoc in the rest of the country, the deadly H1N1 virus has already reached Assam. Two persons in the State have tested positive for the seasol influenza.

“One infected person is from mrup in Dibrugarh district, and the other is from Chatribari area of Guwahati,” Dr Bhobesh Bhagawati, nodal officer for swine flu monitoring in the State, informed.

Interestingly, the patient from mrup, a female, works at the Regiol Medical Research Centre at Lahowal (Dibrugarh), one of the testing centers of the H1N1 virus.

Dr Bhagawati said both the cases were category one, with no complications.

“They did not need any hospitalization and are in home isolation facility. The conditions of both patients are normal, with no side effects,” he said.

The patient from mrup contracted the virus locally, while the one from Chatribari area of the city, a male, tested positive during routine screening of persons who had returned from prolonged stay outside to the State recently.

The Health department, however, said there was nothing to panic.

Two days back, the Centre had sent 1,000 Oseltamivir packs, an antiviral medication used to prevent and treat influenza A and influenza B, to Assam as the State administration geared up to tackle seasol influenza H1N1 in the State.

Nodal Officer Dr BC Bhagawati has been asked to monitor and report the situation on daily basis.

The district drugs controllers have been asked to ensure that pharmacies having scheduled ‘X’ license, are keeping stocks of Tamiflu capsules and Tamiflu (oseltamivir) syrup to meet any crisis.

The total number of swine flu deaths has crossed 1,000 across the country this year, with Rajasthan being the worst affected.

In the Northeast, galand has so far reported four cases and Mizoram one.

In all the five cases, the patient is reported to have been infected when visiting areas outside the Northeast.