Four more ‘swine flu’ cases in city

Delhi reported four fresh suspected cases of influenza H1N1 A on Tuesday.Two of the four suspected cases whose samples have been collected and sent to National Institute of Communicable Disease are admitted at Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital and the other two are in Airport Health Organisation Hospital.

Delhi reported four fresh suspected cases of influenza H1N1 A on Tuesday.

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Two of the four suspected cases whose samples have been collected and sent to National Institute of Communicable Disease (NICD) are admitted at Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital and the other two are in Airport Health Organisation (APHO) Hospital. Three of the suspected cases landed in Delhi from New York and one from Chicago on Monday night.

There was a rumour doing rounds that an eight-year-old girl, who was brought to Guru Tegh Bahadur (GTB) Hospital on Tuesday morning, had been taken away from the hospital by her parents.

Delhi Health minister Dr Kiran Walia, however, refuted the allegation. “It’s not a case of running away. The parents weren’t aware that RML was the nodal centre for swine flu cases. When they came to know later in the day, they preferred to take her there. The girl is at present admitted in RML,” she said.

On Monday, samples of three suspected cases were taken, two of which were admitted to APHO and one in Lok Nayak Hospital. The result of all seven of these suspected cases is awaited.

The NCR also reported its first suspected case of swine flu on Tuesday. A 7-year-old girl, who returned from the US recently, was admitted in a private hospital in DLF City.

The health department team took her throat and nasal swab samples to be sent to NICD for verification, said Dr SS Dalal, chief medical officer, Gurgaon.

“Though no confirmed case of swine flu has been reported in Gurgaon till now, the health department has started to take measures to control the potential spread of H1N1 influenza virus in the city,” said Dalal.