Health hazard: Five patients discharged from AMC after being cleared of Congo virus

Two others from the same family died earlier this week.

ABBOTABAD: Five members of a family including three women suspected of being infected with Congo virus were discharged from Ayub Medical Complex (AMC) after initial medical reports revealed they were not suffering from the disease.

Four others from the same family, of which two have already died, had approached the hospital earlier this week in a related case.

“Their blood tests have proven they are out of danger from a hemorrhagic attack,” AMC Spokesperson Dr Junaid Khan told The Express Tribune on Friday. The blood tests of the patients were carried out at AMC after they were referred by a rural health centre following high fever.

“The platelet count of all the isolated family members was between 110,000 to 250,000, indicating they are healthy. The platelet count of patients infected with Congo or dengue virus usually drops below 50,000,” he added.

He explained the reason behind them falling ill could be fatigue and sorrow over losing two young family members along with the hospitalisation of two others.

Responding to a question, he said only one patient is currently under observation at AMC. Khan Bahadur, 55, whose platelet count was initially below 100,000, now seems to be improving. Junaid did not confirm whether Bahadur could be infected with Congo virus, but added he was having chest problems “and nothing else.”

Casualties

Muhammad Yousaf and his three sons Muhammad Asif, Shiraz and Muhammad Arif were brought to the hospital on Tuesday afternoon after they complained of stomach problems and high fever. However, they left soon after treatment started and went to Combined Military Hospital (CMH), Abbottabad where Asif, 27, died.

The other three were then referred to Military Hospital Rawalpindi, from where they were shifted to Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences Islamabad (PIMS). Family and hospital sources confirmed Shiraz also died on Thursday morning, while Yousaf and his son Arif are presently being kept in isolation. Their blood samples have been sent to National Institute of Health (NIH). The tests will confirm whether the father and son are infected with Congo virus.

Abbottabad District Health Officer (DHO) Dr Zafeer said though Asif and Shiraz did not die at AMC, the initial reports he collected from PIMS suggest they may have been infected. “The two remaining patients are being treated under the Congo virus protocol, although it is not yet confirmed whether they are suffering from the disease,” he added.

“The house and entire locality where suspected victims of Congo virus live have been sprayed with insecticide,” said Dr Zafeer.

Family members said Yousaf, a resident of Mohallah Usman Ghani Havelian, runs a meat shop in the city and his three sons help him. Soon after Shiraz and Asif complained about high fever on Tuesday, the entire family’s condition deteriorated.

The doctors initially thought the patients had consumed poison or a toxic substance.

Short-term measures

A high level meeting was held regarding Congo virus at Commissioner of Hazara Division Abid Ali Khan’s office. It was attended by National Assembly Deputy Speaker Murtaza Javed Abbasi, all DHOs of Hazara, commandant of CMH, Abbottabad and veterinary officials.

The meeting agreed on fumigating all meat shops and cattle pens, spraying disinfectants on livestock brought to Hazara and setting up isolation wards for patients suspected to be infected with the virus.

The meeting also demanded the government declare Hazara a ‘calamity-hit’ area following the death of two brothers who may have been infected.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 14^th, 2013.