City sees rise in Covid patients on O2 support, doctors say no need to panic

Mumbai: In the last two weeks, the number of Covid-19 patients on oxygen support has risen from two to 33, as per the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) reports

Mumbai: In the last two weeks, the number of Covid-19 patients on oxygen support has risen from two to 33, as per the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) reports.

Dr Vasant Nagvekar, infectious disease expert and state Covid-19 task force member, said any viral respiratory infections, irrespective of Covid-19, will have a small number of people having respiratory distress needing oxygen support and intensive care unit (ICU) admission. (StockPic)

On May 26, only two Covid-positive patients were on oxygen support in the city; the June 10 report, however, showed an increase, with 33 patients requiring O2 support. Doctors cautioned that senior citizens and patients with comorbidities are still at-risk.

Dr Vasant Nagvekar, infectious disease expert and state Covid-19 task force member, said any viral respiratory infections, irrespective of Covid-19, will have a small number of people having respiratory distress needing oxygen support and intensive care unit (ICU) admission.

“These are the patients, mostly senior citizens, with multiple comorbidities. It has nothing to do with the severity of the virus. The Covid-19 cases that we are getting now are still mild ones,” explained Dr Nagvekar.

On May 26, the city saw 350 new Covid-19 cases, of which, 16 patients were hospitalised and two out of them were on oxygen. According to the June 10 BMC report, the city saw 1,956 fresh infections, out of which, 83 were hospitalised, taking up the total hospitalisation tally to 369.

Dr Avinash Supe, who heads the state government Covid-19 death audit committee, said the city has seen an overall jump and rise in oxygen bed admission. “We are back to the surge we saw in January this year. But the good part is that 95% are asymptomatic. The hospitalisation percentage is less than 1%. We have to monitor and hope the numbers will decline in the coming days,” he said.

Doctors also observed that the oxygen dependency is not much and patients are recovering with no lung involvement. Dr Rahul Pandit, state Covid-19 task force member and director, critical care, Fortis Hospital, Mulund, said, senior citizens and people with comorbidities have to stay vigilant. “At our hospital, we haven’t seen any Covid-related hospitalisation. However, it is the senior citizens and people with comorbidities who are at a higher risk of getting hospitalised due to the infection. Covid-19 appropriate behaviour like masking, social distancing, following hand hygiene are the only ways to protect oneself from getting the infection,” he said.