Five people have died at Mpilo Central Hospital in Bulawayo after presenting with a flu-like illness that is circulating in the city and other parts of the country.
Doctors have ruled out fears that the outbreak is linked to a new strain of COVID-19.
More than 1,000 patients have been treated for the illness at the hospital since May, amid growing concern among communities about the severity of the infections.
Mpilo Central Hospital chief executive officer, Dr Solwayo Ngwenya, said the flu bug is present, with more children being seen at the institution with severe symptoms that require hospitalisation.
He was speaking in an interview with the Sunday News.
“There is an ongoing flu that most people have caught and are going to catch. It is indeed a very nasty flu,” Ngwenya said.
“It starts like a usual flu, then after a few days you get this terrible sore throat that produces a lot of fluid, and it is very painful.
“Some are not able to breathe properly, to swallow or drink much. It is also going into your lungs, and you start coughing.
“We have recorded five deaths from this flu here at Mpilo since we started receiving patients.
According to Ngwenya, the situation on the ground points to severe flu cases, with five deaths recorded at Mpilo Central Hospital.
“People are coming in with what is called community acquired pneumonias but we have people who have died who have been looking very healthy,” he said.
“The hospital attended to 85 children in May, 257 in June, 528 in July with respiratory conditions. For adults it was 38 in May, 41 in June and 50 in July.
“It appears to us that children are brought to the hospital while most adults may be self-treating in the home.”
Ngwenya urged communities to remain vigilant and observe measures used during the COVID-19 period, such as avoiding crowded areas and close personal contact and self-isolating when symptomatic.
“The wearing of masks must be done by those people who feel they are sick or they may be exposed,” he added.
“This virus may spread further and change its shape, mutating to even more deadly variants,” Ngwenya said.
“During COVID-19, it used to affect the upper airways, mainly the nose and nostrils, and this current virus appears to be going deep inside the trachea, larynx and even the lungs, so people may also be in danger.
“Those people who continue to develop this serious complication of failing to breathe, having a lot of secretions at the back of the throat, must seek urgent medical care because this may cause death by failing to breathe properly.”
Ngwenya warned that the country may need to introduce stricter controls to curb the spread of the flu.
When asked about treatment for the flu-like illness and the use of popular over-the-counter “flu packs” containing antibiotics, he said patients should not take them without medical advice, as antibiotics were not appropriate for treating viral infections.
“The flu starts as a normal flu, but over time, people get a bacterial infection, but they then must see a doctor and get prescribed antibiotics themselves,” he said.
“Sometimes after a viral infection, bacteria then sets in, which can actually kill you because the virus has actually weakened you. I do not encourage people buying antibiotics over the counter.”
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