<p>36 cases of Covid-19 were reported from Karnataka today, the highest so far. This has led to questions regarding the efficacy of the lockdown. BBMP releases an updated map of hotspots in Bengaluru and Akhil explains the challenges in treating Covid-19 cases.</p>.<p>LINKS: Link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDaVbK0F5b7y4hgSZrTwZNg<br />To send videos : makkalavanissk@gmail.com</p>.<p>FULL TEXT</p>.<p>This the daily Covid update from Deccan Herald.<br />We will bring you updates regarding the spread of this virus from across India, with a specific focus on Bengaluru and Karnataka.<br />--------<br />At the time of this recording, we are heading towards almost 13,000 cases of the novel coronavirus in the country.<br />Close to 11,000 people are active reported carriers of the virus in India.<br />1,658 have recovered since they were first tested.<br />The death toll has climbed to 434<br />------------<br />The Indian Council of Medical Research has reported over two lakh fifty thousand samples for testing so far. Over 28,000 samples were collected yesterday alone.<br />-----------<br />A quick look at the numbers from India…at the time of this recording, Maharashtra, Delhi and Tamil Nadu continue to have the most cases of Covid-19.</p>.<p>Maharashtra has over 2500 active cases. The BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation has declared that Mumbai does not have incidents of community transmission so far.</p>.<p>A 19-year-old food delivery boy has tested positive for Covid-19 in the national capital.<br />Authorities have placed 72 houses in his delivery route under quarantine. 17 of his colleagues have also been quarantined. Delhi has over 1500 active cases.</p>.<p>Gujarat reported a staggering 105 cases today, with this, the state has 771 active cases.<br />Karnataka continues to be in the 12th spot but...36 new cases have been reported from the state today. This is the highest number ever recorded in the state since the time the 1st case was registered a little over a month ago. <br />With this there are 220 active cases in Karnataka. 82 people have been discharged so far.<br />The state has recorded 1 death today, taking the toll to 13.<br />-------------<br />A 66-year-old has succumbed to the novel coronavirus in Bengaluru. He had been on ventilator support since April 10th.<br />-----------<br />Belagavi has reported 17 cases today. <br />Of these 8 cases have come in from Hirey-bagey-wadi and are direct contacts of patients 224 and 225.<br />1 from Hukkeri and 4 from Raibagh have a travel history to Dehi and have tested positive on the repeat test.<br />4 others from Raibagh are direct contacts of Patient 245<br />---------<br />Vijayapura has reported 7 cases, of which 6 are direct contacts of patient 221.<br />The last is a one-and-a-half year old baby, who is a direct contact of Patients 228 and 232.<br />-----<br />5 cases have come in from Bengaluru Urban out of whom 1 is a direct contact of Patient 252. One presented with Severe Acute Respiratory Illness and contact tracing is underway for the other three.<br />3 cases have been reported from the Nanjangud cluster in Mysuru. <br />One patient from Kalaburagi is a direct contact of Patient 274, 1 has presented Influenza like Illness and contact tracing is on for the third. Gadag has reported one case, who is a direct contact Patient 166.<br />-------------<br />Following the spike in cases and amid criticism that the lockdown had been a failure, the official Covid-19 spokesperson S Suresh Kumar, said that containment zones will be erected in problematic areas, within which buffer zones will also be set up. <br />The State will seal the hotspots to prevent the spread of the virus.<br />The buffer zones are likely to be announced tomorrow.<br />-----------<br />The BBMP Covid-19 war room has released the latest data for hotspots in Bengaluru. <br />The 'hotspot' designation, applies to any ward which has had one COVID-19 positive case in the last 28 days. According to a report released two days ago, this was applied to 38 wards in the city. However, the new data indicates 34 wards. Twenty-four of these wards show one case each. The total tally is 51 cases within BBMP limits over the last 28 days. This includes those who have been discharged.<br />--------<br />The largest collection of cases as of April 15th, is from Ward 18 - Radhakrishna Temple. Five cases have been reported from the ward over the last 28 days.</p>.<p>Three cases have been reported from each of the following wards - Wards 129 ( Jnana Bharathi), 135 (Padrayanapura), 152 (Sudd-gunta-palya) and 179 (Shaa-kam-bari Nagar) </p>.<p>Two cases have been reported from each of the following wards. Wards 57 (C V Raman Nagar), 112 (Domlur), 134 (Bapuji Nagar), 196 (An-jana-pura) and 198 (Hemmi-ge-pura). <br />--------<br />While the number of cases continue to rise sharply, the state health department’s data on all patients has revealed how little we know about the virus, and recovery rates among those infected.<br />Analysis shows that nothing seems to be relevant in predicting a patient’s recovery. Not the patient’s age, immunity, or even comorbidity can help to understand how long the patient takes to recover.<br />------------<br />Among the patients admitted in Bengaluru, Patient 19 - a healthy 31-year-old man made one of the slowest recoveries to date, he took 25 days. His mother, Patient 22 who is 64 years old, was discharged after 21 days in isolation. <br />The virus takes an average of 14 days to leave the system.<br />While those in the older age groups are more susceptible to death, a 67-year-old woman and a 70-year-old man also survived the disease and were discharged within the normal, 14-day period of isolation.<br />--------<br />In another instance of how unpredictable the recovery process is, Patient 75, a healthy, 26-year-old man made the fastest recovery in the state so far, requiring just nine days.<br />-----------<br />According to many in the medical fraternity, the viral load - or the quantity of the virus - in a patient seems to be the only relevant factor in determining the patient’s recovery. The assumption here is that a high viral load leads to a delayed recovery. But...medical officers have pointed out that the cause of a high viral load itself is a mystery. Covid-19 fatalities have largely occurred because it has been difficult to reduce the viral load in the patients. This results in secondary infections like Severe Acute Respiratory Infection which eventually lead to death.<br />------<br />Here’s another aspect that has baffled the medical community in the State. <br />A 14-day quarantine period was mandatory for those coming to India from foreign countries. This was done to curb the spread of the virus in the incubation period.<br />However, two patients from Karnataka have tested positive after they completed their 14-day quarantine period. Officials say that each patient’s immune system is different and this plays an important role in the manifestation of the disease. The state government considers 14 days of quarantine followed by 14-days of a reporting period, to make sure such symptoms are addressed.<br />------<br />So how do you treat this virus?<br />So far, doctors have been administering paracetamol IV to reduce the strength of the fever which ranges up to 102 degrees Fahrenheit. In addition, the virus plays havoc with sugar levels, prompting many patients to be on diabetic medicine.<br />-------<br />Patients are also given two 75 mg doses of StarFlu medication, once in the morning and once in the evening. They are also administered with a general antibiotic to prevent a secondary infection such as Severe Acute Respiratory Infection or pneumonia, which cause fatalities in Covid-19 patients. In some cases, anti-depressants are also prescribed.</p>.<p>Meanwhile the WHO has said that a vaccine for the novel coronavirus is at least a year away.<br />------<br />India in the meantime will be part of a global solidarity trial of a new Covid-19 medicine. 36 out of 53 Covid-19 patients recuperated when they were treated with the experimental anti-viral drug, Remdesivir according to a team of researchers in the New England Journal of Medicine.<br />The medicine was originally developed for Ebola patients by Gilead Sciences Incorporated. <br />A bigger examination will now be carried out under the supervision of the World Health Organisation before Remdisivir is used by doctors to treat novel coronavirus patients.<br />---------<br />Some of the other aims of the WHO's Solidarity trial are to test the efficacy of anti-malarial medicines like chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine. It will also test a cocktail of two HIV drugs, lopinavir and ritonavir. The anti-HIV drug was used successfully by doctors in Jaipur to treat an elderly Italian patient. However, ICMR has discouraged widespread use of the therapy in the absence of clinical trial data and have left it to individual doctors to decide.<br />--------<br />Moving on, India has received a total of 6.5 lakh COVID-19 testing kits from China today. The country has also procured 1 lakh RNA Extraction Kits from Shenzhen.<br />A point to note - many european countries have returned faulty test kits from China. Ever since then, Chinese exporters of coronavirus tests have had to obtain a registration certificate from the country’s National Medical Products Administration in order to be cleared by customs in China.<br />-------<br />In news from Karnataka, with Ramzan commencing on April 24th or 25th, the Minority Welfare, Waqf and Hajj Department has issued an order suspending congregational prayers at mosques. This includes Friday prayers, and Tara-veeh which is performed everyday during the holy month. The suspension order is until May 3rd. The order has also banned eateries near mosques and dargahs, which are usually open during the month of Ramzan throughout the night. .<br />----<br />In Karnataka, Chief Secretary TM Vijay Bhaskar has said that 14 essential government departments will continue to work through the extended lockdown. The departments include Health and Family Welfare, Medical Education, Rural Development and Panchayat Raj.<br />According to the circular, this notice is valid until April 19th. Those who are visually-impaired or physically-handicapped are exempt from work.<br />-----<br />The state government is considering a special grant to the four road transport corporations which are struggling to pay their employees, as the lockdown has stopped revenue generation.<br />The shutting down of transportation has hit KSRTC revenue with the corporation losing 254 crores from April 1st to the 15th.<br />---------<br />The state education department has launched a dedicated YouTube channel for kids, called ‘Makkala Vaani’. It seeks to reach out to children easily and engage them in various activities until schools are reopened. <br />The channel will telecast programmes every morning from 10.30 am onwards.<br />-------<br />Children can submit their videos on Whatsapp on the number displayed on your screen.They can also email the videos to the address provided in the description.<br />To visit the Makkala Vaani channel, click on the link provided in the description below.<br />-----<br />Before we go,<br />Contact tracing apps are being developed everyday in the time of COVID-19. One example is the central government’s Arogya Setu app which alerts people if any person in their vicinity has tested positive.<br />But an app developed in Indian Institute of Science campus, goes one step further. </p>.<p>Instead of identifying just primary contacts, IISc’s GoCoronaGo claims to warn users of secondary and tertiary contacts as well. The risk score varies according to how close the user is to a patient.<br />The closer you are, the higher is the risk score.</p>.<p>Other contact tracing apps such as the central government-driven Arogya Setu collect phone numbers, names, email ids, smoking preferences and mandate GPS location. With GoCoronaGo, one can volunteer a phone number and GPS location, but providing such personally identifiable information is not mandatory.</p>.<p>For the latest updates log on to deccanherald.com.<br />------------</p>
