New Delhi: Over the issue of several parts of India reporting a large number of flu cases, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) said that the cases are due to the Influenza A subtype H3N2 virus, NDTV reports.
Many places in the country were reporting an increasing number of influenza cases in the past two months, which causes prolonged illness and lingering cough.
According to the news house, after two years of the Covid-19 pandemic and ensuing vulnerabilities, the general public views the new crisis with fear.
ICMR said that the subtype H3N2 accounts for more hospitalisations than other subtypes. It has been spreading in India for the past three months, says experts.
The disease shows symptoms such as persistent cough and fever. Patients keep complaining about prolonged symptoms, too, NDTV writes.
Dr Anurag Mehrotra, Siddh Hospital, said that infections are taking time to get resolved,. Symptoms are stronger and persist for a long period though the patient has recovered.
However, clinical trial specialist Dr Anita Ramesh says the strain of the disease is not life-threatening, though some patients need to be admitted to hospitals due to respiratory problems. She stated that though some of her patients showed symptoms of Covid-19, none tested covid positive.
ICMR has released a list of Dos and Don'ts for people to follow and keep them from infections.
Meanwhile, Indian Medical Association (IMA) advised against the overuse of antibiotics since there are rising cases of cough, cold and nausea etc. Doctors were asked to prescribe the symptomatic treatment only and not antibiotics.
The medical body said about it detecting widespread use of Azithromycin and Ivermectin during the Covid-19 period and advised against it.
"We have already seen widespread use of Azithromycin and Ivermectin during Covid, and this too has led to resistance. It is necessary to diagnose whether the infection is bacterial or not before prescribing antibiotics," IMA said in a statement.