In 2012, a total of 483 rubella cases were reported in the country. PHOTO: REUTERS/FILE
ISLAMABAD:
As many as 165 confirmed cases of rubella have been reported nationwide this year, an Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI) official told The Express Tribune on Monday.
The official, who did not want to be named, said 83 cases have been reported in Sindh, 53 in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, 26 in Punjab, two in Azad Jammu and Kashmir and one case was reported in Balochistan.
In 2012, a total of 483 rubella cases were reported in the country.
No rubella-related casualties have been reported so far, but the rising number of cases is alarming, said the official.
“Rubella vaccination has not yet been included in the EPI, but it’s about time it was,” he said.
The official said that at this stage, Pakistan cannot afford an outbreak of any disease as the country has not even gotten rid of polio or measles yet.
Talking to The Express Tribune, National Institute of Health (NIH) Principal Epidemiologist Dr Rana Muhammad Safdar said the symptoms of rubella — also known as German measles — are very similar to those of measles, including high-grade fever and body rashes.
In rare cases, complications from the disease can result in death, he said.
“Since a significant number of rubella cases have been reported over the last few years, the government is planning to take up the issue of introducing its vaccine in the EPI before the Immunisation Technical Group,” he added.
Dr Safdar said the World Health Organisation (WHO) has recommended including the rubella vaccine in the EPI to wipe out the disease, he said.
He said children under the age of five should be vaccinated against rubella like other vaccine- preventable diseases.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 10th, 2014.
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