Hospitals ill-equipped to handle dengue cases in Karachi
Despite the looming threat of the disease, public hospitals are not provided with diagnostic kits
PHOTO: AFP
KARACHI:
Every year, the monsoon season brings a myriad of problems for the people of Karachi. From flooded streets to overflowing storm water drains, life comes to a grinding halt. And just as when the people of Karachi were struggling with the aftermath of rains, the scare of mosquito-borne diseases has emerged as a full-blown health threat.
This especially pertains to diseases like dengue because rainwater presents an ideal condition for disease-carrying mosquitoes to lay their eggs. Despite the looming threat of dengue, government hospitals in Karachi have not been provided with kits to diagnose the disease.
Meanwhile, health experts have said that owing to the huge presence of mosquitoes in the city after the monsoon rains, hundreds of people are being affected by dengue every day. They added that the absence of diagnosis kits in government hospitals is pushing affected people towards private hospitals, which is causing an additional financial burden to those who can’t afford private healthcare.
Experts have also said that there is an urgent need to spray pesticides in the city to stop disease-carrying mosquitoes from breeding.
Govt prepares for dengue outbreak
Awareness programme
The dengue prevention control programme, on the other hand, claims that diagnosis kits have been distributed to about 100 hospitals in Sindh, including Karachi.
The head of the programme, Dr Iqbal Mehmood Memon, recently chaired a post-monsoon review and planning meeting for dengue in Sindh and stressed the need to create awareness about the disease. He said that posters and pamphlets will be distributed for the purpose.
He added that a survey team will be formed to check all government hospitals and ensure that each hospital is provided with dengue diagnosis kits.
During the meeting, it was claimed that the situation of dengue in Sindh province is under control. However, a spokesperson of the dengue control programme informed The Express Tribune that that six people have already died due to dengue fever this year, while 1,152 cases have been reported in Karachi since the beginning of the year. The number of reported cases in Sindh stands at 1,213.
According to a recent report of the World Health Organisation (WHO), around 50 million people fall prey to various mosquito-borne illnesses every year. It mentioned that there are 38 types of mosquitoes that spread the dengue virus, while in Pakistan, there are only two types of mosquitoes that cause dengue, including Aedes aegypti (the yellow fever mosquito) and Aedes albopictus (the Asian tiger mosquito). These two types of mosquitoes are also responsible for spreading chikungunya.
Dengue larvae found in three schools
Symptoms
Speaking about the symptoms of the dengue virus, Dr Tahir Shamsi, an expert in blood diseases at the National Institute of Blood Diseases (NIBD) said that developing a high fever, pain in the bones, pain in the eyes, red spots on the body and external bleeding are some of the main symptoms of dengue.
“When afflicted with the disease, a CBC blood test has to be undertaken and no medicines without the prescription of the doctor should be taken as it can worsen the situation,” he said.
Dr Shamsi further said that the mosquito that becomes the cause of dengue only breeds in clean water and bites people only at the time of sunrise and sunset after which the patient develops the symptoms within five days.
“Patients suffering from dengue should be given plenty of water or other liquids. To reduce the fever, we administer paracetamol. However, some patients develop complications that could turn out to be fatal, so a doctor must be consulted immediately,” he said.
According to a recent report presented in the National Assembly, since 2015, some 51,764 people have been affected by dengue in the country, with the highest number of patients belonging to Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. During this period, 10,477 people have been affected in Sindh, 6,058 in Punjab province, 3,930 in Islamabad and 1965 in Balochistan.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 23rd, 2019.
Every year, the monsoon season brings a myriad of problems for the people of Karachi. From flooded streets to overflowing storm water drains, life comes to a grinding halt. And just as when the people of Karachi were struggling with the aftermath of rains, the scare of mosquito-borne diseases has emerged as a full-blown health threat.
This especially pertains to diseases like dengue because rainwater presents an ideal condition for disease-carrying mosquitoes to lay their eggs. Despite the looming threat of dengue, government hospitals in Karachi have not been provided with kits to diagnose the disease.
Meanwhile, health experts have said that owing to the huge presence of mosquitoes in the city after the monsoon rains, hundreds of people are being affected by dengue every day. They added that the absence of diagnosis kits in government hospitals is pushing affected people towards private hospitals, which is causing an additional financial burden to those who can’t afford private healthcare.
Experts have also said that there is an urgent need to spray pesticides in the city to stop disease-carrying mosquitoes from breeding.
Govt prepares for dengue outbreak
Awareness programme
The dengue prevention control programme, on the other hand, claims that diagnosis kits have been distributed to about 100 hospitals in Sindh, including Karachi.
The head of the programme, Dr Iqbal Mehmood Memon, recently chaired a post-monsoon review and planning meeting for dengue in Sindh and stressed the need to create awareness about the disease. He said that posters and pamphlets will be distributed for the purpose.
He added that a survey team will be formed to check all government hospitals and ensure that each hospital is provided with dengue diagnosis kits.
During the meeting, it was claimed that the situation of dengue in Sindh province is under control. However, a spokesperson of the dengue control programme informed The Express Tribune that that six people have already died due to dengue fever this year, while 1,152 cases have been reported in Karachi since the beginning of the year. The number of reported cases in Sindh stands at 1,213.
According to a recent report of the World Health Organisation (WHO), around 50 million people fall prey to various mosquito-borne illnesses every year. It mentioned that there are 38 types of mosquitoes that spread the dengue virus, while in Pakistan, there are only two types of mosquitoes that cause dengue, including Aedes aegypti (the yellow fever mosquito) and Aedes albopictus (the Asian tiger mosquito). These two types of mosquitoes are also responsible for spreading chikungunya.
Dengue larvae found in three schools
Symptoms
Speaking about the symptoms of the dengue virus, Dr Tahir Shamsi, an expert in blood diseases at the National Institute of Blood Diseases (NIBD) said that developing a high fever, pain in the bones, pain in the eyes, red spots on the body and external bleeding are some of the main symptoms of dengue.
“When afflicted with the disease, a CBC blood test has to be undertaken and no medicines without the prescription of the doctor should be taken as it can worsen the situation,” he said.
Dr Shamsi further said that the mosquito that becomes the cause of dengue only breeds in clean water and bites people only at the time of sunrise and sunset after which the patient develops the symptoms within five days.
“Patients suffering from dengue should be given plenty of water or other liquids. To reduce the fever, we administer paracetamol. However, some patients develop complications that could turn out to be fatal, so a doctor must be consulted immediately,” he said.
According to a recent report presented in the National Assembly, since 2015, some 51,764 people have been affected by dengue in the country, with the highest number of patients belonging to Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. During this period, 10,477 people have been affected in Sindh, 6,058 in Punjab province, 3,930 in Islamabad and 1965 in Balochistan.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 23rd, 2019.