In response to reports on the surge in respiratory infections in children in China and the general alert on monitoring trends in influenza-like illnesses (ILI) and severe acute respiratory infections (SARI) by the Union Health Ministry, the Health department has directed all district medical officers to keep a tab on ILI/SARI cases in hospitals and to renew the alert against H1N1 fever across districts.
The November-December period is the usual season when flu and respiratory illnesses, such as H1N1, shows a spike in Kerala, especially among children, and hence the general alert against H1N1 has been renewed, the Director of Health Services said here.
The spike in respiratory illnesses and clusters of pneumonia reported among children in northern China since mid-October has set the alarm bells ringing in the rest of the world, even though China has clarified that the surge in respiratory infections is due to flu and other known pathogens.
