Two more fall prey as dengue strikes

Four deaths have been reported in 3 days while with 2,706 dengue patients in Karachi and 369 in Hyderabad.

KARACHI:

Two more persons have died in the province due to the dengue virus, taking the total death toll of such patients to 18 in Sindh so far this year.

Of this statistic, 17 people lost the fight to the deadly fever in Karachi alone.

A 70-year-old man of Gulistan-e-Jauhar was admitted to a private hospital on October 21 and died on October 24, according to a report released by the Sindh Dengue Surveillance Cell on Friday. Meanwhile, the total number of patients diagnosed with the deadly disease has crossed 3,100 so far this year.

Hyderabad has the second highest dengue patient count but the city’s first death was reported on Friday. An 18-year-old boy in Hyderabad was admitted to a private hospital on October 21 and died on Friday.

An 11-year-old boy of Landhi, Karachi, was admitted to a private hospital on October 22 and died on Thursday. A 12-year-old girl of Keamari passed away after being infected with the virus in a private hospital on October 16, according to a report released on Wednesday. Four deaths have been reported in three days while the total number of dengue patients is 3,103, including 2,706 in Karachi and 369 in Hyderabad.

“We are making all-out efforts but we cannot control it without the help of the local communities,” said a focal person of the dengue cell. He said that a delay in seeking medical aid was one of the major causes of death.

Sources at the cell believed that the late start of the fumigation drive was responsible for the increasing prevalence of the disease. Only two patients have died in Abbasi Shaheed Hospital while all others passed away at private hospitals.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 26^th, 2013.