Deaths from Congo virus

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Just this week, five fatal cases of the Crimean Congo Haemorrhagic Fever (CCHF), commonly called Congo fever, have been reported in the country. Three of the deaths happened in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and two in Karachi. The deaths in Karachi – of two men ageing 25 and 42 – mark the first in Sindh this year from Congo virus. Both succumbed within days of their diagnoses, highlighting the severity of the disease and the lack of timely intervention, medical preparedness, and public awareness surrounding it.

Despite being endemic and officially recognised as a major public health threat, the prevalence of Congo virus is not widely documented in Pakistan. Symptoms of the disease can include fever, muscle pains, headache, vomiting, diarrhoea, and even bleeding under the skin. The virus is mainly spread to humans through tick bites or by coming into contact with the blood or tissue of infected animals, which exacerbates its spread during and after the Eid-ul Azha season.

This year, roughly 6.8 million animals were sacrificed in Pakistan, according to the Pakistan Tanners Association (PTA). However, the country lacks a proper system required to manage the health and safety risks of such a large-scale event. Livestock are often brought into the city without regulatory health screening and temporary cattle markets are erected without an understanding of biosecurity protocols.

The use of gloves, protective clothing and proper disposal of animal waste is advised by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) ahead of the festival but not only are these practices barely observed, they are often considered unnecessary and needless.

Unfortunately, prevention and care are the only options for managing the Congo virus as there are no FDA- or WHO-approved drugs for CCHF, or a commercially available vaccine. Therefore, the government must boost its efforts to strengthen surveillance, public awareness and biosecurity measures to prevent wider outbreaks in the future.