Karnataka government has granted permission to Narayana Nethralaya to set up the first private lab in the state to test H1N1. Here, the patients can go and test for H1N1 virus if they suspect symptoms of the flu.

So long the state had two designated labs where tests where carried out free of cost. They are KMC Manipal and the National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS). With the change of season, the state is gearing up itself to handle the second wave of the H1N1 pandemic. Large scale surveillance programme has been scheduled at the district levels, said PN Srinivasachari, Karnataka health commissioner.

Narayana Nethralaya which is leading ophthalmology care centre has installed the real-time PCR machine. The facility will commence tests only after NIMHANS certifies results of the 50 sample cases it has provided. However, the facility was formally inaugurated, said Dr Bhujang Shetty, chairman and managing director, Narayana Health City.

The real-time PCR can later help test other respiratory diseases and brain infections. Narayana Nethralaya procured the machine at a cost of Rs 25 lakh from the US. The hospital will charge Rs 5,500 for the test, he added.

Patients with symptoms of category C (severe symptoms) can get their tests done for free at NIMHANS. Those with symptoms of category B (milder symptoms) can go to the Narayana Nethralaya lab for testing.

According to Dr V Ravi, professor and head, department of Neuro Virology, NIMHANS, the H1N1 has claimed over 100 lives in the state and reported 5,000 fatal cases across the globe. The second wave has already hit UK early this month. The cold weather is a culprit as after a dip in the number of cases in August and September, the there has been a surge in the pandemic.

Although it is too early to say if India will witness a similar crisis with the onset of winter, respiratory experts from a cross section of hospitals like Lake Side, Manipal and Wockhardt have expressed their concerns that the high altitude location of Bangalore makes the city highly vulnerable.

Observing the earlier pandemics globally, the second wave had recorded an increased mortality rate. But since there is a targeted drug Tamiflu to contain the H1N1 virus, the need of the hour was to access the test and the treatment as fast as possible, said Dr Ravi.

Going by the severity of the first wave of the H1N1 virus, at this point the need of the hour is a vaccine to prevent the flu. Global pharma majors like Sanofi Glaxo SmithKline, Baxter and Novartis which are leading suppliers abroad have been permitted to sell vaccines in India. They have been asked to submit clinical trial reports to the Drug Controller General of India. In the first phase, health workers who are at higher risk of contracting the flu will be immunized, starting from December 15," added Dr Ravi.