KGMU faculty, staff donate blood as dengue cases rise

Lucknow, Nov 3 (IANS) Nearly 100 persons, including faculty, staff, and students of the King George’s Medical University (KGMU) in Lucknow have donated blood and pledged to donate platelets if the university’s blood bank faces the crunch.

The donors participated in a blood donation camp held on Thursday at Transfusion medicine department that was inaugurated by KGMU Vice-Chancellor Prof Soniya Nityanand.

She emphasised on the importance of such initiatives in ensuring a sufficient supply of blood and platelets for patients in need.

Platelets are especially crucial for patients with conditions such as cancer, dengue, and those undergoing organ transplants.

Prof Tulika Chandra, head of transfusion medicine department at KGMU, said the university has registered over 6,000 platelet donors to date.

By conducting the ‘Registry for Platelets Donation’ programme involving students, nursing students, and paramedical students, patients suffering from platelet deficiencies will be able to receive single donor platelets. Meanwhile, the availability of platelets remains crucial as dengue cases continue to pour in.

A suspected dengue-related death of a 38-year-old woman was recorded in the city on Thursday.

She died at a private hospital in Banthra in Lucknow.

Meanwhile, 37 new dengue cases took the total count to over 1,900 this year.

So far, the health department has officially confirmed only one dengue death.

Officials said they will confirm the cause of death after conducting an audit.

The woman, Nazneen, her husband Mohammad Yakub and their 10-year-old son were admitted to a private hospital in Banthra with symptoms of high fever three days ago.

Yakub said they all had tested positive for dengue infection. Though his and his son’s condition improved during treatment, Nazneen experienced a continuous drop in platelet count.

“The doctor told me that she had internal bleeding, which led to vomiting of blood,” said Yakub.

The family then transferred her to another private hospital, where she passed away during treatment.

Their son is still in a critical condition.

–IANS

amita/ksk