Another swine flu death in Telangana, toll reaches 17

One person died of swine flu in Telangana today, taking the toll of the disease-related deaths this month to 17.

Since December, a total of 26 people have died of swine flu in the state, said L Narendranath, director of the state-run Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) here.

He said 141 samples were tested for swine flu yesterday and 53 turned out to be positive, while 57 samples were tested today out of which 22 were positive.

"On an average, two deaths are being reported per three days this month so far. Government would continue to take the same measures (as before) till it is felt that the virus has gone away," he said.

The current strain of H1N1 virus was less severe compared to the one that spread in 2009, he added.

The number of calls received by the '104' helpline too had come down in the last few days, Narendranath said.

Adequate stocks of medicines were available and testing kits, sought by the Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, had been dispatched from Delhi, he said.

As many as 206 people were being treated for swine flu in hospitals in the state as of yesterday.