GUWAHATi: The sudden spurt of the H3N2 virus across the country has become a grave concern. The symptoms of the new H3N2 virus are similar to that of COVID-19 with cases of respiratory tract infections having risen considerably in the last couple of months.
People are mostly showing symptoms of fever, body ache, sore throat, cough, runny/blocked nose, and shortness of breath. The recovery rate is slightly longer, especially for patients who are having persistent cough and weakness.
Assam Health Minister Keshab Mahanta talking about the precautionary measures taken by the government said, “Preparations have already been made for the measures to be taken. We all have to be aware. No one has been identified in Assam so far. People should not panic and they should be careful.”
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has called Influenza A subtype H3N2 as the major cause of rising respiratory illness in India. According to the data given by ICMR, Pan respiratory virus surveillance has been established by ICMR/DHR across 30 VRDLs.
Emphasising the clinical features of Influenza A H3N2, ICMR has said that this subtype appears to cause more hospitalisations than other influenza subtypes.
“Out of the hospitalized SARI patients with influenza A H3N2, about 92 per cent are suffering from fever, 86 per cent from cough, 27 per cent from breathlessness, 16 per cent with wheezing, and additionally, 16 per cent had clinical signs of pneumonia and 6 per cent has seizures. Also, 10 per cent of SARI patients who have H3N2 needed oxygen, and 7 per cent required ICU care,” ICMR stated as per reports.
The Indian Medical Association on March 3 advised doctors and medical practitioners across the country to avoid prescribing antibiotics for seasonal fever, cold, and cough, as it leads to antibiotic resistance. Whenever there will a real use of antibiotics, they will not work due to the resistance.
ICMR has also suggested people wash their hands regularly and avoid shaking hands and spitting in public.
