Mumbai: H1N1 cases in the city between Jan and mid-July this year rose to 113 from 41 reported during the same period last year, according to data released by BMC’s health department. Doctors attributed this sharp rise to erratic weather patterns that have created a conducive environment for viral transmission.
While the majority of the cases remained mild, hospitals reported increased severity among patients over the age of 60 and those with underlying comorbidities, with some requiring ventilator support.
Cases of other vector-borne diseases also surged during the same period: malaria from 3,115 to 3,681, dengue from 734 to 938, and leptospirosis from 136 to 157. These diseases typically surge as the monsoon progresses. However, BMC’s health department was unable to provide a monthly breakdown of the data.
Dr Hemalata Arora, an infectious diseases expert at Nanavati Hospital, said the city has experienced abrupt weather swings characterised by high temperatures and humidity. “Viruses thrive in these conditions,” she said.
Although H1N1 has begun to show a downward trend, Dr Gautam Bhansali, a consultant physician at Bombay Hospital, said the season for chikungunya and dengue cases has begun. “We are seeing patients with joints pain, fever and vomiting, which are common in chikungunya. There have also been a few suspected leptospirosis cases,” he said.
Dr Anita Mathews, an infectious diseases expert at Fortis Hospital, said due to changing weather patterns and an increase in construction activity, malaria and dengue are no longer largely restricted to the rainy months and are now seen almost throughout the year in varying numbers.
While plasmodium falciparum malaria is considered more life-threatening than plasmodium vivax, Dr Arora said there have been severe cases of plasmodium vivax across all age groups. For instance, a 19-year-old plasmodium vivax malaria patient was referred to the hospital after developing a hospital-acquired infection and gram-negative sepsis. “It was followed by Guillain-Barré syndrome as a post-infection complication,” she said.
