Dengue toll reaches 21 in Delhi

With dengue claiming three more lives on Thursday, the dengue toll in the national capital has risen to 21 on Friday.

Delhi Health Minister Satyender Jain earlier announced that a total of 11 people have died of dengue in the city.

Mohd. Shehwaj (11) from Uttar Pradesh, Kiran Kumari (12) from Delhi's Nangloi and Rahisha (37) from Dwarka area died on Thursday at Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital.

"They all died due to dengue shock syndrome leading to multi-organ failure on Thursday," an RML official said.

In another case, an 18-year-old Rishabh succumbbed to the virus at Max Hospital in Vaishali in Ghaziabad on Thursday.

According to Rishab's family, the Delhi youth was first taken to the Gupta Multispeciality Hospital in Vivek Vihar then to Max Hospital, Patparganj, and finally to Max Hospital, Vaishali, where he died.

"We first took him to Gupta Multispeciality Hospital in Vivek Vihar on Monday, where his platelet count was found to be 80,000. The doctors there told us to arrange five units of platelets. Around 2.30 a.m on Monday, the doctors said he was critical and must be shifted to a bigger hospital," said Rishabh's elder brother Himangshu.

"... we took him to Max Hospital, Patparganj, early Wednesday where there weren't enough beds... We then took him to Max in Vaishali around 8.30 p.m. on Wednesday. He was put on ventilator but he died around 6 p.m. on Thursday," he added.

A Max hospital statement said: "Rishab was brought to the emergency room of Max Hospital, Patparganj, in a critical condition on September 16 (Wednesday) early morning hours with diagnosis of dengue shock syndrome fever with Thrombocytopenia."

"On investigation, his platelet count was found very low 9,000 and one unit of platelet was transfused. Since the critical care beds were not available, the option of shifting the patient to nearby Max Vaishali was given to the attendants. In the meantime patient was managed in the Emergency care of Max Patparganj," it added.

"With the consent of the attendant, the patient was shifted to Max Vaishali in an advanced cardiac life support ambulance with emergency doctor and a paramedic staff in the evening of 16 September. In spite of all active resuscitation measures put in by the team of doctors, the patient succumbed to dengue on 17 September (Thursday) at 5.55 p.m."