Stay warm to keep away the flu

With winter setting in, citizens of Bangalore are pulling out their woollens. With it, the season seems to have ushered in a barrage of infections.

Doctors say they are seeing a sharp rise in cases of viral fever, and bronchial and upper respiratory tract infections, particularly among children, and advise people to take precautions.

Keep inhalers handy

Attributing the rise in fevers to the sudden drop in temperature, which is conducive for virus and allergens to thrive, doctors say they are also seeing increased incidence of asthma and allergic rhinitis. Those prone to respiratory tract infections and bronchitis are likely to suffer the most and may have to keep their inhalers and medicines handy, say doctors.

Another vulnerable section are those predisposed to joint pains and skin infections, with the cold weather aggravating these problems.

Doctors a busy lot

Doctors at the State-run Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital and Victoria Hospital say there has been a considerable increase in the number of patients visiting the hospital. The situation is the same at K.C. General Hospital, another government facility.

“We are getting at least 30 patients with viral fever, apart from other infections, these days. While none of them have been serious cases that required admission, most patients have ended up taking a prolonged course of medicines,” Mohan, senior specialist at K.C. General Hospital, says.

Doctors at Indira Gandhi Institute of Child Health say they are seeing more than 40 children daily with complaints of wheezing and throat infections.

Institute director Shivananda says children are more susceptible to nasal allergies and wheezing. “Of the 150 children we see every day, more than 40 are coming with complaints of respiratory infections. If these infections are not controlled in children, it might lead to complications such as pneumonia,” he says.

“We expect a further rise in this number in the coming days because of the weather,” he adds.

Advise

Doctors at Victoria Hospital say most patients were advised to undergo nebulisation and use inhalers.

K.R. Ravindra, Associate Professor at the Department of Medicine, Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute, advises people to keep themselves warm and eat food that is properly cooked. “Those who step out early in the morning and late in the evening are exposed to the cold weather and are more likely to catch a viral infection. Special care should be taken to ensure that children and the elderly, who are more vulnerable to such infections, are not exposed to the cold.”