Highly contagious : Hospitals see spike in chickenpox cases

Health department starts a mass awareness campaign in affected districts


Our Correspondent May 05, 2017
PHOTO: EXPRESS

LAHORE: As large numbers of patients of chickenpox have been admitted to the city’s hospitals, the health department has issued an advisory and launched awareness campaigns to stop the spread of the disease.

According to reports, as many as 32 cases have been reported in different hospitals of the provincial capital, while different districts, including Faisalabad, Jhang, Sahiwal, Sargodha, Okara, Nankana Sahib, Chiniot, Toba Tek Singh and Bhakkar, have already been badly hit. Scores of children have been admitted with chickenpox in these districts.

Dr Qazi Mumtaz, a senior pediatrician, told The Express Tribune that chickenpox was a highly contagious disease and could spread through saliva, mucus or contact with the blisters of an infected person.



“The virus can also be transmitted through the air by coughing or sneezing,” he added. Dr Qazi stated chickenpox was caused by the varicella-zoster virus. It spreads easily from people with chickenpox to others who have never had the disease or been vaccinated.

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Former King Edward Medical University vice chancellor Professor Faisal Masood said though the chickenpox was known as a common disease among children, the virus has a worse affect on adults. “It could cause mortality due to co-morbidity,” he said. He stated patients with the symptoms of high grade fever, rashes on the body, vomiting and stiffness in the neck should immediately be referred to a hospital for proper treatment.

The health department also started a mass awareness campaign in the affected districts and special health education sessions were held in schools. Moreover, advertisements have also been published to create awareness among people. A Health Department spokesman said patients were coming to hospitals at a time when the disease had become more “At this stage,” he said, “treatment and saving the life of the patient becomes a big challenge.”

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Last week, Provincial Minister for Primary and Secondary Health Khawaja Imran Nazir also conducted a meeting in this regard and according to his press statement, he directed the health CEOs to focus on the campaign in affected areas. The meeting also decided that an SMS alert, defining WHO guidelines on chickenpox, should be sent to general practitioners.

The health minister also formed a technical committee, comprising professors and specialists of tertiary care hospitals, to probe the matter and submit a report within 48 hours.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 5th, 2017.

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