Rain needed: Flu cases rising in the capital

Most patients caught the virus from family members.

ISLAMABAD:

Everyone, it seems, is eagerly awaiting the first December rain as the usual coughing and sneezing associated with dry, cold weather is keeping people from enjoying the chilly evenings after an unusually hot summer.

The emergency and outpatient departments (OPDs) of public hospitals are overcrowded with patients suffering from the flu, cough, high fever, chest congestions, allergies and asthma. According to sources in Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) and Polyclinic Hospital, over 300 patients suffering from these ailments are visiting the hospitals on a daily basis.

Emergency ward in-charge and official spokesperson for Polyclinic Hospital Dr Tanvir Malik told The Express Tribune that 2013 has witnessed a 30 per cent increase in the number of patients suffering from seasonal flu and allergies as compared to last year.

Although the weather is the main reason for the illnesses, a majority of the patients at the hospital are those who caught the virus from other family members, according to a senior physician at Pims.

“There is a dire need to run an awareness campaign regarding the precautionary measures that can be adopted against seasonal flu,” he said.

Physicians also termed taking antibiotics against the seasonal ailments an unhealthy practice and said prescription medication, if taken at an earlier instance or given to another individual with a similar condition, can often ends with unwanted complications and side effects. Contrary to the global trend of asking an individual to take leave while suffering from the flu and protect coworkers from getting the virus, the illness is not taken as seriously in Pakistan.

Meanwhile, Pakistan Metrological Department Director Khalid Malik said the dry spell in Islamabad is likely to end on December 11 as light and scattered rain is expected that day. Another rainy spell is expected to start from December 21 and last for ten days, he added.

The temperature is also expected to drop to single figures in January.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 8^th, 2013.