November 9th 2023.
Mumbai is facing a spike in acute respiratory illnesses, as the state health department has recorded at least 175 cases between November 1 and 7 from nine sentinel surveillance sites. Pune recorded the highest number of cases, while Jalgaon, which had the highest AQI during the same period, saw zero cases.
The state government has taken urgent action to address this alarming situation by picking JJ Hospital to implement sentinel surveillance for ARIs in 17 of the most polluted cities in the state, including Mumbai. As per the directive, government-run hospitals have set up separate wards to deal with ARI cases and will be closely monitoring all surveillance sites.
Dr Gautam Bhansali, physician at Bombay Hospital, said that he is seeing around 10 more patients a day as compared to last month who are complaining of breathing problems, sore throat, cough, and cold. Children and elderly are particularly vulnerable due to the poor air quality.
With Diwali just around the corner, the authorities expect a surge in cases of asthma, allergic rhinitis, chronic inflammatory lung disorder, and dry coughs triggered by air pollution. To tackle this, the hospital has set up an independent respiratory disorders cell jointly managed by the Department of Medicine and Chest-Tuberculosis.
The average AQI of the 17 cities selected for sentinel surveillance was between 160 and 280 between November 1 and 7. It is high time we take stringent measures to reduce air pollution, as the city has already witnessed 13,444 deaths due to respiratory ailments in the last 5 years.
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