Public health: No dengue outbreak this year, says virologist

‘Multan, RY Khan are problem areas’.

LAHORE:

A virologist of the Punjab University Dengue Research Group (PUDRG) has predicted that there will be no dengue outbreak in Lahore this year.

Punjab University Vice Chancellor Dr Mujahid Kamran on Friday presided over a meeting of PUDRG at Al Raazi Hall. MPA Khawaja Imran Nazir, Registrar Amin Ather, Dengue Research Group Chairman Saeed Akhter, Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences Dean Zakria Zakir, Environment Secretary Anwar Rashid, Hall Council Chairman Dr Muhammad Akhter and University of Health Sciences professor Dr Muhammad Aslam participated in the meeting.

PU Centre of Excellence in Molecular Biology’s (CEMB) Associate Professor Dr Idrees Khan said his research indicated that there would be no outbreak of dengue fever in Lahore or Rawalpindi.

He said last year, the CEMB had received 500 samples from Rawalpindi, of which half had tested positive for dengue fever.

However, he said, dengue fever was likely to spread in Multan and Rahim Yar Khan this year.

He said if samples were provided to the CEMB, the level of the outbreak could be predicted.

Kamran said early in 2013, Khan had predicted that there dengue fever would not spread like an outbreak and his forecast had proved true.

MPA Khawaja Imran Nazir said the government was taking measures to cope with the dengue fever menace.

Community participation was required to prevent dengue fever.

Dr Saeed Akhter said Eidul Fitar was falling in July and there was need to take preventive measures for people travelling during that time.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 1^st, 2014.