EXPERTS have warned people against receiving unnecessary intravenous drips for influenza, which could be life-threatening.
Intravenous drips had been abused by doctors to treat influenza in China, Shenzhen Economic Daily reported.
Known for battling pseudoscience and academic misconduct, Fang Zhouzi wrote in a science article in December 2009 that there were three methods of treating the flu: medication, vaccination and an intravenous drip. The intravenous drip was the most dangerous of the three, the article said.
However, most patients were not aware of the potential risk and believed an intravenous drip was the most efficient way to treat the flu as long as they first passed an allergy test, the paper said.
The recent cold weather had seen a large number of flu patients swamp hospitals for intravenous drips.
One woman had spent at least 80 yuan (US$12) on an intravenous drips at a health center in Bao an District.
She ended up with a skin allergy the next day which her doctor said was normal.
Doctors offered no alternative because the drip returned the most profit, the paper said.
During Shenzhen s annual political advisory meeting last month, two political advisers proposed the city health department standardize intravenous drips and employ stricter management of hospitals.
In addition, trust between doctors and patients should be improved, the advisers said.
In November last year, a woman with flu died from a drug allergy after receiving an intravenous drip.
At least 100,000 people die from unsafe intravenous drips each year in China, according to statistics.
About 70 percent of intravenous drips in China were useless, according to World Health Organization figures.
(Li Hao)
