Most of the cases were not serious with patients discharged after basic treatment, doctors say PHOTO: BOLUKEBAB
According to Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) officials, some 973 patients with acute gastroenteritis caused by overeating of meat products brought to Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) in the last two days. Polyclinic reported at least 450 such cases over the same period.
Doctors said that most of the cases were not serious, with patients discharged after basic treatment, but they added that food poisoning and haphazard eating can cause serious health issues.
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“If a person normally eats half-a-plate of meat on a normal day and then [on Eid days] stuffs himself with four plates of meat in one day, he’s definitely going to upset his stomach,” Polyclinic media coordinator Sharif Astori said bluntly.
Pims head Dr Javed Akram said that almost three-quarters of the patients brought to the hospital were men, while 21 per cent were women, and five per cent were children.
Two patients were in serious condition, Dr Akram said, adding that one of them had gotten a bone stuck in his throat after attempting to eat without chewing.
On a side note, Dr Astori also added that caution needs to be taken while storing all of the leftover and uncooked meat from sacrificial animals.
Over 1,500 land in Lahore hospitals during Eid holidays
More than 1,500 people were admitted to city hospitals due to food poisoning, gastroenteritis and road accidents during Eid holidays.
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At least 120 people were admitted to various hospitals for orthopaedic surgery and 90 people were brought to emergency wards with injuries caused by knives during animal slaughtering.
Dr Salman Kazmi of Mayo Hospital said that 51 of the people who were brought to the hospital were injured in road accidents. He said that 20 people were brought in for orthopaedic surgery. “At least 300 gastro patients were brought to the hospital in three days. The hospital treated 20 people who had suffered cuts while slaughtering animals,” he said.
“At least 100 gastro patients and 30 people injured in road accidents were admitted to Jinnah Hospital,” said Dr Asad Ali who was treating patients at the emergency ward. He said that hospital staff had attended to more than 500 people in emergency wards during Eid holidays. He said that many people suffering from indigestion, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and diarrhoea had visited the hospital during Eid holidays. “The emergency ward was jam-packed with patients on the first day of Eid,” he said. He said that overeating and spicy food had landed most of these people in the hospital.
Dr Azeem, who was on call at Services Hospital during Eid holidays, said the hospital administration had called him in due to a huge rush of people suffering from knife injuries, road accidents and gastro. “The rush at the emergency wards reflects on our social behaviour,” he said. “Doctors advised people to eat moderately, but to no avail,” he added.
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Health Department spokesperson Akhlaq Ali Khan said that doctors and paramedics had served people in a timely manner during Eid holidays. “All medicines were available and all hospitals worked smoothly,” he said.
Thousands of gastro patients throng to hospitals in Karachi
While the residents of Karachi were busy celebrating Eidul Azha, public hospitals remained unusually overcrowded during the three days of festivities.
Around 3,000 patients visited the accident and emergency ward of Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) during the first three days of Eid, said JPMC focal person Dr Javed Jamali. They complained of diarrhoea, vomiting and dehydration, he said.
Explaining the reason, Dr Jamali said that most people consume red meat beyond their capacity during the festivities. Patients had consumed red meat twice or thrice a day since the first day of Eid, he remarked. "Our body organs are not used to the excessive meat we consume during Eid." According to Jamali, overconsumption of meat causes a multitude of serious problems, among which gastric issues are of basic nature, but can be stabilised. He further added that it takes two to three hours to stabilise a gastric patient. Talking about the increased inflow of patients, Dr Jamali reasoned that during the holidays, clinics in certain neighbourhoods are closed so patients visit mainstream hospitals, which sometimes causes overcrowding in the emergency wards.
On the other hand, the deputy medical superintendent Civil Hospital, Karachi, Dr Shane Alam, said that their hospital's emergency ward has also received a significant number of gastric patients. However, the number has significantly reduced over the years due to spread of awareness on the issue, he added.
Dr Alam was of the view that the number of gastric patients will increase in the coming days as many people have refrigerated meat and will consume it in the coming days. People should not eat meat more than once a day since it can cause a number of diseases, he said, adding that they should consume vegetables instead.
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The hospital also received seven trauma cases --- all caused by rash driving on motorcycles.
Meanwhile, 15 suspected cases of dengue fever were also brought to the hospital. Of them, seven have been confirmed, while four patients are in the hospital’s isolation ward.
The patients with dengue are from Islamabad, Abbottabad and Gilgit-Baltistan.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 16th, 2016.
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