PUNE: While the city has witnessed a significant surge in viral infection cases and most of its indoor facilities are running at full capacity, no single or even a couple of viral infections are dominant unlike in past years, officials said.
According to city doctors, no single or even a couple of viral infections are dominant this year unlike past years. Hospitals are flooded with patients exhibiting symptoms such as fever, headache, conjunctivitis, rash, diarrhoea, severe body ache, and joint pain among others. Despite showing classical symptoms of viral diseases such as dengue or chikungunya, only a few patients are testing positive for the same, doctors said.
Dr Aniket Joshi, physician at Lokmanya Hospital, said that the scenario this year is different and that every new patient they come across is different. Due to this, the number of samples tested for various diseases and infections has increased considerably. “We are getting patients having fever of unknown origin with symptoms of influenza-like virus, dengue, chikungunya and other diseases. Besides, cases of dengue, influenza, chikungunya, H1N1, and swine flu have increased,” Dr Joshi said.
Hospitals are seeing a rush of patients with flu-like symptoms and upper and lower respiratory infections for almost a month now. There have been cases of chikungunya, dengue and Zika among others.
Dr Ameet Dravid, infectious diseases expert, Noble Hospital, said that this year, there is a large number of patients with rash, headache, fever, severe body ache and joint pain among others. Following symptomatic treatment, other symptoms subside in the next four to five days but patients continue to complain of symptoms such as joint pain and body ache. “This year, cases of dengue fever are less in comparison to chikungunya. The intensive care unit (ICU) is now full of vector-borne and influenza virus illness cases. In the initial stage, diseases like dengue and chikungunya cannot be detected from samples. However, once the patients recover, they don’t come for repeat testing,” Dr Dravid said.
Dr Prashant Gaikwad, consultant – internal medicine, Aditya Birla Memorial Hospital, said, “We cannot differentiate the infection based on the signs and symptoms as in most cases, the symptoms are overlapping. Blood investigations are helpful for diagnostics. The line of treatment remains the same and all patients are given symptomatic treatment. We are also seeing a lot of severe dengue form cases this year. People should avoid self-medication and home remedies, and seek medical guidance to avoid delay and complication,” Dr Gaikwad said.
Rohit Malhotra is a medical expert and health journalist who offers evidence-based advice on fitness, nutrition, and mental well-being. His articles aim to help readers lead healthier lives.
