A viral outbreak has led to many people suffering from fever and sore throat, doctors said on Sunday.
Clinics are flooded with patients with symptoms such as mild fever, which persists for two or three days, runny nose and sore throat.
A doctor said the infection spreads through tiny droplets that emanate during sneezing or coughing. Children with such symptoms should avoid going to school till they recover. The elderly and those with existing medical conditions should avoid coming in close contact with people running a temperature and having a runny nose or a sore throat.
Amitabha Saha, a critical care expert, said fluctuations in temperature and humidity levels, as is happening now, boost viral activity and contribute to the fast spread of infection.
“There has been a spike in viral infections over the past two to four weeks,” said Saha, head of critical care at AMRI Hospitals Mukundapur.
“The ongoing spell of temperature and humidity fluctuations is aiding the viral activity. Some days are too humid and the sun is scorching, while other days are quite cool because of rain,” said Saha.
The typical symptoms of the current viral infections, he said, include “fever, sore throat and runny nose”.
Chandramouli Bhattacharya, an infectious disease specialist at Peerless Hospital, said eight patients who had tested positive for influenza viruses were treated at the hospital last week.
“Even now, two or three people are under treatment. There is an ongoing influenza outbreak,” Bhattacharya said.
Many people who were asked to undergo tests have tested positive for H1N1, H3N2, Influenza A and Influenza B viruses, said Bhattacharya.
“Many people are also getting infected by other viral infections,” he said.
Bhattacharya suggested people should adopt protective measures like wearing masks to prevent or reduce the spread of the infection.
“Wear a mask if you have someone have symptoms like fever and runny nose while interacting with others. I would suggest parents should not send their children to school if they have similar symptoms,” he said.
“The elderly people and the children should be kept away from others who have similar symptoms. Others who are vulnerable because of some existing diseases should also be kept away,” he said.
Bhattacharya advised that elderly people should take the Influenza vaccine to stay protected.
“There are vaccines available and one should take them immediately for better protection,” he said.
Several Calcuttans told The Telegraph that they have been down with fever, runny nose and sore throat recently.
A resident of Kasba said he had all three symptoms on Friday and Saturday. “I was with a friend for a couple of hours last week who had fever and was sneezing repeatedly,” said the Kasba resident. He was doing better on Sunday.
A Behala resident echoed him.
Apurba Ghosh, a paediatrician, said children too were suffering in large numbers.
“A large number of children are coming to the clinics with these symptoms. In most people, the infections have been self-limiting but it could be severe in few children,” said Ghosh, director of the Institute of Child Health, Kolkata.