After 10 days on ventilator, patient survives worst bout

MUMBAI: If the government needs a poster-girl to underline the fact that swine flu is curable, it has a ready case study in a Powai resident who seems to have survived H1N1's worst manifestation and come off the life support system.
She is perhaps the first H1N1 patient who, after being on ventilation for 10 days, is now off the artificial respirator.The 33-year-old H1N1-positive patient was put on ventilation at L H Hiranandani Hospital after she developed Adult Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS).
Hiranandani hospital CEO Dr Sujit Chatterjee said, "This is a landmark development, but it is not something impossible. The patient responded well to the treatment.'' The woman was taken off ventilator and put on a non-invasive ventilation (oxygen given through a mask).
She had all the symptoms of a high-risk patient: a history of diabetes and hypertension. "We did not do anything special. She was given the prescribed doses of Tamiflu. We kept her on ventilation and life support system and gave her intravenous medicines. We also treated her for diabetes and high blood pressure.''
A doctor said ARDS cases were not incurable. However, a senior doctor said ARDS cases were not incurable. Given the availability of better treatment, only a third of the patients with ARDS die, said the doctor. A Hiranandani hospital source said "while the patient's improvement is not a medical miracle, it is indeed a pleasing experience''. This case was detected at the right time and "wasn't really a terminal case".
The other swine flu patient, a 28-year-old Chandivli resident, remains critical but stable.