In the news: Rise in swine flu in Maharashtra, dialysis patients die due to power cut and more

Uptick in swine flu cases in Maharashtra

At least 13 deaths have been reported due to the H1N1 or swine flu virus in Maharashtra since the beginning of the year. Pune has recorded six deaths since January this year, while there have been three in Solapur, two in Aurangabad and one each in Nashik and Kolhapur.

More than 50 cases have been recorded in the region, including the north Maharashtra and Marathwada, with Pune registering more than half these cases. In 2016, the State had recorded 82 cases and 25 deaths due to the virus.

State health officials say that despite a slight increase in the H1N1 toll this year, the outbreak seems to be following the normal seasonal transmission pattern. Scientists from the city-based National Institute of Virology said there has been no change in the genetic make-up of the virus.

Health officials have asked people to take normal precautions against getting infected. In Kolhapur district, the administration has set up emergency cells at primary health centres after a 45-year-old patient died from the disease.

Eman Ahmed’s weight-loss surgery

The world’s heaviest woman Eman Ahmed who arrived in Mumbai from Alexandria last month for medical treatment underwent her first-weight loss surgery and has been put on a high-protein liquid diet. Ahmed who weighed 500 kg before the surgery has lost about 122 kgs after the laparoscopic sleeve gastronomy – a procedure in which the size of her stomach was reduced to curb her appetite.

Ahmed’s doctors at the Saifee Hospital in Mumbai are still waiting for Ahmed’s genetic study reports, to see of they can find the cause of her condition. They suspect that her obesity is linked to alterations in one or multiple genes linked to obesity. Ahmed’s blood reports are normal and kidney functions have improved drastically during her stay at the hospital, the Hindustan Times reported.

Power outage kills dialysis patients

Three patients undergoing dialysis at the Indira Gandhi Medical College and Research Institute in Puducherry died after a power outage at 11 am knocked out their haemodialysis machines. The patients – two women and a man – developed complication after the 15 minute power outage and doctors who rushed to their aid were unable to revive them, the hospital said.

A medical officer said that after the power was restored, the patients started vomiting, their muscles became stiff. Two patients died almost immediately, while the third patient died in the ICU.

A doctor, two nurses and three trainee technicians have been held responsible for the incident and suspended. A panel of two nephrologists and an executive engineer will conduct an enquiry. The government has announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the families of the deceased.

The three died last Thursday, which was also World Kidney Day.