The surge in cases of dengue in Hyderabad

Hyderabad, August 27, 2021:

Demand for platelets, especially those from blood donors, is skyrocketing as 7 out of 10 critical hospital patients are found to have dengue. Experts say that, apart from petitioning social media groups, most blood banks see demands of 10 to 20 units daily, and the situation is likely to get worse.

“Despite keeping in touch with friends, acquaintances, blood banks, and very active social media groups, patient relatives spend an average of 24 hours trying to get donors, with dozens of requests. “We are,” said the Red Cross Blood Bank. The same was repeated by the Aarohi Blood Bank in the city.

In one such case, relatives called more than 50 times to contact them about all possible options for obtaining platelets. “My 14-year-old nephew was very critical and had a platelet count of less than 5,000 on Saturday. Despite all attempts, only one unit was available by Saturday night. The next day we Received another unit from the police and several other groups contacted us. He is now recovering and is in the ICU, but was able to get it on time. I think I was lucky, “said Srikanth Uyala, adding that the situation at Covid-19 meant that donors were reluctant to donate. Srikanth posted a request on Twitter on Saturday.

Aside from resistance from donors, single-donor platelets are not stored by blood banks because they can only be stored for up to 5 days. Blood banks have offered to isolate platelets, but getting donors is difficult. “There are up to 5 requests per day, each requesting 1 or 2 units. Unlike previously receiving plasma requests, we have seen platelet requests, especially from the last 10 days. “More,” said Arun Daniel Yellamaty, founder of the Youngistan Foundation. On the other hand, if the platelet count is below 10,000, which is below the normal range of 150,000-450,000 platelets per microliter of blood, a platelet transfusion is required. “If you have less than 10,000 platelets, or if you have bleeding symptoms such as urine, stool, stomach, or brain blood, you need a blood transfusion,” said Dr. MN Lakshmikant Reddy, an internal medicine consultant at Medicover Hospital.  ET Health