Pollen is in the air: Over 3,000 allergy complaints received in last two weeks

Pollen count expected to peak after March 20.

ISLAMABAD:

With the arrival of spring, pollens are back to their old ways of making breathing difficult for the locals of twin cities.

In the last 13 days, the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) received over 1,560 pollen allergy patients, while the Polyclinic Hospital and Shifa International Hospital received over 780 and 650 patients, respectively.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Dr Fartash Sarwar, Casualty Medical Officer (CMO), at Pims emergency ward said, “At night the emergency ward is overcrowded with pollen allergy patients and majority come with severe shortness of breath.”

Dr Athar Rana, a Senior Consultant at the Shifa International Hospital, told The Express Tribune that it is estimated that every year around 100,000 residents of the twin cities fall victim to pollen allergy.

“Though the OPD is flooded with pollen allergy patients, I can hardly manage to see 50 patients per day,” he said.

However, more rains this season can result into lesser patients. “This year the spring season has started a bit late and Islamabad is also receiving rains so it is expected that this year the pollen season will be shorter and less aggressive,” he said.

“Chopping paper mulberry is not the permanent solution as its roots re-grow, there is a need to destroy its roots to get rid of it completely and for that purpose various chemicals could be used,” he suggested, while talking about main causes of proliferation of pollen energy.

Dr Ghulam Rasul, Chief Meteorologist at the Pakistan Meteorological Department, said that due to the current rain there will be a drop in the pollen count which will continue for more 10 days.

However, it is expected that after March 20, the pollen count will be at its peak with a count of 35,000 to 40, 0000 patients untill the season ends.

PM’s pollen allergy, dengue management project remains in doldrums

The project of the “Prime Minister’s special initiative for the management of dengue and pollen allergy” in Islamabad remains in doldrums despite allocations of Rs59 million.

The project, aimed to make Islamabad pollen and dengue-free was launched in 2011 but no work on it has been done so far.

While talking about the dormant project, an official at the Ministry of Capital Administration and Development Division (CADD), on the condition of anonymity said, “The project still exists but it is dormant and there is no major reason behind its delay except ignorance.”

Meanwhile, a senior physician at the Polyclinic Hospital, who wished not to be named, said that the plan to make Islamabad a pollen-free city is in doldrums, however, some funds were released for this cause last year but no one knows where they went.

“The worst thing about this plan was that it was formulated jointly for dengue fever and for pollen allergy which does not make any sense as both the disease are scientifically different from each other,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 14^th, 2013.