1020 cases of swine flu so far: Health Secretary Radhakrishnan

An awareness programme aimed at making the public aware of the various precautionary measures to be taken to avoid dengue and swine flu was held at the Vellore New bus stand. Health Secretary Dr J Radhakrishnan also attended the event.

The programme emphasized on keeping the environment clean and also made the public aware that sprinkling disinfectants in the public transportations like the auto and buses would prevent the fever from spreading further. Handouts stressing the importance of keeping the environment clean were also distributed.

Addressing the media after the event Dr Radhakrishnan said, "The fever was on a high during the month of October. What began as an emergency mitigation, has gradually attained normalcy. The public need not worry about the fever that arises in these times. Instead people should go to the nearby government hospital when the fever attacks. Beware of the quacks and don't go to them.

The district management and all other departments are involved in preventing the fever from spreading further. As part of the activities taken up by the departments, making people aware of the need of washing hands holds an important place.

Further, Lizol-the widely used disinfectant, is being sprinkled in public-frequented places like theatres, bus stops, marriage halls, buses and autos to prevent spreading of this disease."

He further said, "416 large vehicles and 710 small vehicles were used for the mobile awareness programmes. With the help of 1700 fever prevention centres, we are able to control the spread of this fever. The government hospitals have the required amount of medicines. Please don't come to the hospital long after the fever has struck. With the sprinkling of Lizol in the public places, spread of fever has been kept under control."

"From the 3800 cases of swine flu, 17 have died last year. This year, so far 1020 cases of swine flu have been recorded of which 17 have died. 12 people have died of Dengue.

People with asthma and obesity should be careful. Last week there was a rise in the number of inpatients and outpatients in the government hospitals as well as Primary Health Centres (PHC). The number has decreased in the last 5 days. The government hospitals are equipped with further medical facilities. The state is under constant observation for these fevers. Tamil Nadu has seen a 35% decrease in the number of cases of swine flu," he added.