As the mercury rises skywards, a sudden rise in diarrhoeal diseases especially in children is witnessed, flooding at least three hospitals in Peshawar with a deluge of patients, with many doctors at several other hospitals across the province saying they were treating an enormous number of patients suffering from the heat-related ailment.
The health experts believe that the changing weather conditions are giving a rise to diarrhoea mainly among children and warned that the major shift in the temperature had caused a serious rise in the number of patients.
Doctors at the Lady Reading Hospital said the hospital’s emergency ward got inundated with around 4,458 diarrhoea patients in just one month and shared that out of these patients, 2315 were women.
Furthermore, almost 200 patients belonging to all age groups, particularly children, are brought to the hospital on a daily basis.
The situation is more or less the same in Khyber Teaching Hospital, the second-largest hospital in the province, where in just one month, 180 children presenting with diarrhoea were rushed in for treatment, of whom seven are still hospitalised.
At Hayatabad Medical Complex, a large number of patients with, hemorrhagic fever, diarrhoea and cough are receiving treatment with the numbers rising steadily with each day.
According to the records of the hospital, so far around 20160 infected people have been brought to the emergency ward. The hospital is still providing treatment to 30 children undergoing treatment.
Sources said that an outbreak of diarrhoea had been reported in the same area from Malakand earlier.
Similarly, scorching heat, combined with other factors like intake of contaminated food and water, has led to a spurt in the number of diarrhoea cases in other districts as well.
Preventive measures
The health emergency has prompted health experts to raise alarms and advise the general public to drink boiled water and take extra preventive measures.
Health expert Dr Shams-ul-Zaman Wazir described the change in the weather as one of the major causes behind the growing number of different diseases recently, adding that Rotavirus – a leading cause of diarrhoeal diseases – had seen a dramatic rise.
With these harsh summer conditions, he advised people to limit staying outside for long and asked them to stay hydrated throughout the day.
"People go out in the baking heat and consume the unhygienic juices and water which then leads to infection, especially cholera,” Dr Wazir said. He further said that many people, especially children, bathe in contaminated waters of the canals to cool off body heat.
He cautioned that citizens need to be especially aware of the fact that the risk of heatstroke is very high from 12 noon to 4pm, which can lead to severe diarrhoea. Excessive dehydration leads to life-threatening conditions.
“Only drink boiled water. Water should be fully boiled for at least one minute. thoroughly wash any fruits or vegetables which will be eaten raw without peeling. Rinse with drinking water after washing,” he said.
He said that in case of diarrhoea, people between the ages of 10 and 60 should be rushed to the hospital immediately for effective treatment.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 28th, 2022.
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