Maharashtra reported four new Covid-19 cases on Saturday, all from Mumbai, bringing the total number of infections in the state since January to 2,624, data released by the state’s Public Health Department revealed.
As on Saturday, 2,536 patients have recovered from the virus, placing the recovery rate at 96.49 per cent. The number of active cases currently stands at 47, and all patients are said to be exhibiting only mild symptoms, the Public Health Department said.
So far, 35,765 Covid-19 tests have been conducted in Maharashtra since the start of the year, as part of its ongoing surveillance of Influenza-like Illness (ILI) and Severe Acute Respiratory Infections (SARI) patients.
In Mumbai alone, the number of confirmed cases this year has reached 1,043, with a notable surge recorded in May (435 cases) and June (551 cases). July has so far reported 51 cases.
Since January, 41 Covid-related deaths have been recorded in the state.
Of these, 40 had underlying comorbidities, including diabetes, hypertension, cancer, chronic liver disease, renal failure, and various cardiovascular and pulmonary conditions. One death involved a 47-year-old woman with fever and breathlessness, who had no known comorbidities.
The department has urged citizens not to panic and said Covid-19 testing and treatment are available through public health facilities.
The state`s Covid-19 review meeting has outlined several directives:
Continued ILI and SARI surveillance
Mandatory testing for all SARI cases and 5 per cent of ILI cases
Genome sequencing of all positive samples
Ensuring that public health institutions, medical colleges, and municipal hospitals are equipped with testing and treatment facilities.
Covid-19 hospitalisation, family history behind unexplained sudden deaths: ICMR study
Hospitalisations due to severe Covid-19 infection, a family history of sudden deaths, as well as lifestyle behaviours are some of the reasons behind the unexplained sudden death, according to a study led by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).
The peer-reviewed study published in the Indian Journal of Medical Research explored factors associated with unexplained sudden deaths among adults aged 18-45 years in India.
It showed that Covid vaccination was not responsible for sudden and unexplained deaths seen among young and healthy individuals.
The study was conducted in 2023, following anecdotal reports of sudden, unexplained deaths in India`s apparently healthy young adults, which were linked to Covid-19 infection or vaccination.
Covid-19 vaccination did not increase the risk of unexplained sudden death among young adults in India. Past Covid-19 hospitalisation, family history of sudden death, and certain lifestyle behaviours increased the likelihood of unexplained sudden death,” the researchers said.
Using a multicentric matched case-control model, the researchers included 729 cases and 2,916 controls from 47 tertiary care hospitals across India.
