46 H1N1 cases in 3 mths

'not worrisome' ????? City Had Not Reported A Single Case In 2011 Till Jun 26 Mumbai: The civic authorities are insistent that H1N1 cases in the city are sporadic and nothing to worry about. But statistics suggest otherwise. While 46 positive cases of H1N1 have been reported between April and June so far, there were zero cases in Mumbai during the corresponding period last year.      Dr Anil Bandivadekar, executive health officer, attributed it to more awareness. "We cannot say there has been any spurt in cases so far this year. People are occasionally testing positive and we are closely monitoring those cases too," he said. On Sunday, a private laboratory sent its reports to the BMC saying seven people tested positive for H1N1. He said it was a weekly report and not clusters of cases coming positive together. Twelve people have tested positive in June itself.      Dr A C Mishra, director of Pune's National Institute of Virology, also maintained that globally, the virus has taken the character of a seasonal influenza virus. "We have been constantly monitoring its behaviour. There have been no major variations to worry about. Mutations, too, are normal like what other viruses go through," he said.      The virus, Mishra added, has been affecting all age groups alike. This also came forth in the Sunday cases that turned out to be positive. A six-year-old girl from Mahim and a 57-year-old woman from Bandra tested positive and were put on Tamiflu. Barring the 36-yearold man from Malad, who had to be admitted to a private hospital, all patients were treated on an outpatient basis. Infectious diseases consultant Dr Om Srivastava said that although monsoon is here, there has not been a significant rise in H1N1 cases.      "We are seeing cases in Kasturba Hospital but that is a nodal centre. Otherwise there are not many cases in the community."      He, however, said that people have to remain alert. "There is a lot of awareness about getting tested and treated."      The H1N1 influenza has claimed 16 lives in the state since April this year and affected more than 260 individuals. Dr Pradeep Awate, state epidemiologist, said monsoon was favourable for the growth of the virus but it is nothing that cannot be curbed by staying alert. 'Swine flu deadlier than India thought'  Global Death Toll 15 Times Higher Than Reported?  New Delhi: India may have grossly underestimated the might of 21st century's most aggressive pandemic.      A study, which will be published in the medical journal Lancet on Tuesday, says the deaths caused by H1N1 pandemic flu in its first year (2009-10), could be 15 times higher than the number of laboratory-confirmed deaths previously reported to the World Health Organization.      The study was conducted by US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Atlanta, with help from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi. During the pandemic, 18,500 laboratory-confirmed H1N1-deaths were reported worldwide from April 2009 to August 2010. The new research indicates the death toll was anywhere between 1.51 lakh and 5.75 lakh during the first year when the virus circulated worldwide.      The results say, 80% of the total deaths occurred in people below the age of 65, contrary to seasonal influenza where most deaths occur among the elderly.      Additionally, the study suggests that 51% of the deaths may have occurred in south-east Asia and Africa, continents which are home to 38% of the world's population. The scientists say, "China and India, where about a third of the world's population live have garnered little information about the burden of influenza."      India's age-adjusted respiratory and cardiovascular mortality rate associated with 2009 pandemic influenza H1N1 per one lakh individuals stood at 4.1-6 per lakh population. Lead author Dr Fatimah S Dawood from the CDC said, "The study underscores the significant human toll of an influenza pandemic. We hope this work can be used not only to improve influenza disease burden modelling globally, but to improve the publichealth response during future pandemics…".      The study says, "As a general rule, the number of labconfirmed flu deaths is known to be significantly lower than the number of flu deaths that actually occur." The CDC estimated the 12-month cumulative symptomatic attack rate and multiplied it by the estimated symptomatic case fatality ratio from 17 sites in 13 countries — India, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Denmark, Germany, Kenya, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Peru, England, USA and Vietnam.  BIGGER SCOURGE      18,500 laboratory-confirmed H1N1 deaths were reported worldwide from April 2009 to August 2010      Study shows death toll was between 1.51 lakh and 5.75 lakh during first year of the pandemic      80% of the deaths occurred in people below the age of 65