Pune: A 30-year-old woman has succumbed
to swine flu at a private hospital here, taking the toll in
the viral infection in the city to 44.
Sharada Phulpati died last night, hospital authorities
said on Wednesday.
The flu continues to spread in the city with
authorities reporting positive cases in one more school and
two colleges in the city yesterday.
According to Dr Ashok Mehta, Joint Director, Health,
29 schools and six colleges in the city have so far reported
swine flu cases since the first fatality on August 3.
A total of 21 patients are in ICU out of which eight were
on ventilator, he added.
The National Institute of Virology (NIV), which is the
only designated lab for testing of throat swabs for the virus,
is flooded with samples of suspected patients, resulting in
delay in obtaining results.
Health officials are looking into the possibility of
authorising private labs to test for the virus to reduce the
load on NIV.
Bureau Report
