‘Dengue fever not a serious disease’

ISLAMABAD: Despite cases of Dengue fever outbreaks, the National Institute of Health (NIH) has kept no current record of dengue fever patients in the capital.

Upon enquiry, Dr Jaleel Kamran of Epidemic Investigation Cell NIH said, “The institute is not keeping a record of patients infected with Dengue fever because it is not a serious disease. Also, if the government releases such data to the public, it would only cause panic.” He said the authority regularly receives blood samples to be tested for dengue fever from various hospitals in the twin cities. According to Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN), 74 people died of dengue fever in Pakistan during 2006 to 2009, when there were 3,242 laboratory-confirmed cases of this disease during the period.

Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne infection with flu-like symptoms and can sometimes cause a potentially lethal complication called dengue haemorrhagic fever. The disease is a leading cause of death among children in some Asian countries and is endemic in more than 100 countries around the world. WHO estimates that around 2.5 billion people, two fifths of the world’s population, are at risk of contracting dengue.

President Infection Control Society Pakistan Dr Rafiq Khanani, said that since the past two years the government has not recorded data of dengue fever patients in the country. He said the latest data available is for the years 2005 to 2008. Khanani said, “It is the prime responsibility of the government to take preventive measures before the start of any disease season (from July to September), but unfortunately in Pakistan, this practice has always been neglected”.

When The Express Tribune contacted Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) there were contradictory reports about the number of dengue fever patients visiting the hospital. Some senior staff claimed that a dengue fever patient had been admitted in the hospital in the past few days; however, Professor Mahmood Jamal, executive director Pims said “the hospital has not recently treated any such patient.”

“Some patients register in the outpatient department and some in the emergency ward, so it is difficult to ascertain the number of dengue fever patients visiting the hospital,” said Dr Rizwan Qazi, a senior physician at Pims.

Official Spokesperson Polyclinic Hospital Dr Sharif Astori said the hospital received its first dengue fever patient on September 23 when Irum Fatima, 19, came to the hospital with four family members suspecting to have contracted the dengue virus. “Fatima was the only one admitted after testing positive for dengue fever,” he said. To control the spread of the virus, the government should fumigate commercial areas such as markets, bus stops and railway stations, he added.

Senior Director of Capital Development Authority’s Directorate of Health and Services Dr Hassan Urooj said as the season of dengue and malaria starts, the authority fumigates nullahs, which are common breeding grounds of mosquitoes. He said if the government takes appropriate preventive measures before the beginning of the disease season, “it is without a doubt that unnecessary health expenditures will decrease”.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 5^th, 2010.