First malaria death reported in Sindh

12-year-old boy dies of malaria fever due to poor medical care

KARACHI:

Sindh government has issued a concerning alert as the first malaria-related death of the year has been reported, alongside an additional 4,608 reported malaria cases across the province.

The Sindh Health Department reported the first malaria fatality in the region this year, involving a tragic incident in Mithi, where a 12-year-old boy died of malaria fever in a hospital due to a delay in providing medical care.

Reportedly, the child was taken to the hospital on September 4 but owing to poor medical health care he breathed his last on September 7.

According to the latest data from the health department, 4,608 new malaria cases were reported during the last 24 hours, bringing the total reported cases in 2023 to 301,353 across Sindh.

The fatal case occurred in Tharparkar, where 186 new cases were recorded within a day. Furthermore, Karachi reported 32 new malaria cases during the past 24 hours, whereas the majority of malaria cases continue to be concentrated in the interior of Sindh.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 13^th, 2023.