Thaindian News

Bangalore, Aug 16 (IANS) A 26-year-old woman has died from the Influenza A (H1N1) virus here, taking the swine flu toll in the city to four and India’s total to 26 so far, a medical official said Sunday.
Shamshad Begum died in the Baptist Hospital late Saturday, five days after she was admitted with pneumonia symptoms.

“She also had a cardiac problem, which was not diagnosed earlier,” Abraham Chandy, chief of medical staff of the hospital, told IANS.

As her condition deteriorated, doctors suspected H1N1 and she was administered Tamiflu on Aug 14 and her throat and nasal swabs were sent for tests. Shamshad Begum passed away Saturday evening and the test results confirming H1N1 virus came later, he said.

Shamshad Begum is the second woman in her twenties to succumb to the H1N1 virus in Bangalore. On Aug 12 Rupa Anand, also 26 years, died from the Influenza A, becoming the first victim in the city.

In all the four cases test results confirming H1N1 reached the hospitals after the patient had died.

Asked about this, Chandy said: “It takes 24 hours for test results to come. However, as soon as we suspect a patient to be suffering from H1N1, we begin administering Tamiflu tablets,” he added.

“We have two more H1N1 patients under treatment and both are progressing well,” Chandy said.

The other two H1N1 virus victims in Bangalore were Shivanna, 55, and Manjunath, 28. Both died Friday.