With Bated Breath... Chronic Respiratory Patients On Alert

Docs Advise Vulnerable Lot To Take Precautions, Wear N95 Masks

- Somrita Ghosh

With the air quality index entering the harmful zone in the national capital after Diwali and likely to stay up for now, those already suffering from asthma, chronic lung conditions, and other respiratory issues are the most vulnerable lot.

"We admitted six patients on Diwali for acute exacerbation of COPD or asthma. Some people have also come with cough and respiratory symptoms, but those are clear-cut chest infections. The number seems significantly less than last year, but we will get a clearer picture in the next few days," said Dr. Sumit Ray, head of critical care medicine at Holy Family Hospital. The admitted patients are without any chest infection and without fluid in the lungs, and only such cases could be linked to previously existing respiratory disorders, not to chest infections, he added.