SARS: More suspected cases in Punjab, Kerala

The wife of a suspected Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome case reported from Bathinda was also admitted to the civil hospital on Thursday, a senior health official said.

Saroj, 45, wife of Jagdish Rai, the first suspected SARS case reported from Punjab on Wednesday, was admitted to a civil Hospital at Bathinda after she complained of high fever and respiratory complications, Bathinda Chief Medical Officer Dr S K Goyal said.

He said that both have been placed under observation and their samples sent to the National Institute of Communicable Disease in New Delhi.

He said that Jagdish Rai, a railway employee, had shown improvement in his condition.

Punjab chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Thursday claimed no cases of SARS have been reported in the state.

During a surprise check at various offices in Ropar, he directed civil and health authorities to ensure requisite preventive measures to check the outbreak of the disease.

Meanwhile, the blood report of Girish Kishanchandra Gajavani, 23, who was admitted to the Nasik civil hospital in Maharashtra has proved negative, according to civil surgeon Dr Madhukar Patil said.

A resident of Nasik Road, Gajavani, who returned from the United States on April 18, was admitted to the hospital on Sunday evening and kept under observation in the isolation ward for suspected SARS.

All preliminary tests, carried out by the hospital were normal and no patch of pneumonia was seen in his x-rays, but as a precautionary measures his blood sample was sent to Pune's NIV for test on Monday, Patil said.

Gajwani's mother and other family members said they were 'relaxed' on getting the news.

"We knew Girish had no signs of SARS as he was tired only due to journey and had cough and temperature due to climatic changes after returning from the US," she said.

In Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala two suspected cases have been reported and the patients have been kept under observation in hospitals, State Health Service Director Dr V K Rajan said.

The two had recently arrived in the state from Singapore and Toronto and had viral fever and cough. They were being observed as they had come from SARS-prone countries, Rajan said.

Their blood samples have been sent to National Institute of Virology, Pune, for further examination, he said.

Somakanthan, 73, a resident of Singapore, who arrived in Thiruvananthapuram last week, was admitted to medical college hospital with viral fever and cough.

Another patient, Varghese, hailing from Cherthala in Allapuzha district, arrived from Toronto in March. He also had viral fever and cough and was admitted to a private hospital in Kochi on April 22, Rajan said.

Meanwhile, a test report of a suspected SARS patient, reported from Kochi earlier, was proved negative.

The SARS Outbreak: The Complete Coverage