Three more persons in the city were tested positive for the H1N1 (swine) flu virus on Thursday,taking the total number of positive patients to 11. A 26-year-old woman,a 45-year-old man and a 19-year-old man were tested positive after their samples were sent to Super Religare Laboratories. The three patients have been administered Tamiflu and are now stable. They are under the care of private doctors. The 19-year-old is a friend of a swine flu patient and the virus was transmitted via contact, said Dr Mangala Gomare,BMC assistant health officer. Last week,Kasturba Hospital saw its first swine flu case this year when a 23-year-old man from Bhiwandi was admitted. The majority of the cases have been reported from private labs. After a lull of almost a year,the swine flu virus re-emerged this year starting with a six-year-old boy from Mulund testing positive a few weeks ago. Consequently,two others from his family also contracted the disease. Despite the new cases on Thursday,BMC health officials claimed the flu will recede with the onset of summer. The high temperature and humidity levels are not conducive to the growth of the virus. These stray cases are mostly extended viral infections. In all probability,there will be no more cases once the summer fully sets in, said BMC health executive officer Dr A Bandivdekar.
