KARACHI:
The number of hepatitis patients in Dost Muhammad Khaskheli village in Malir has been rising and, doctors believe, the major reason is the reuse of syringes by medical practitioners.
This development emerged on Monday during a medical camp arranged in the village by the Pakistan Research and Development Organisation (Prado) and HANDS in collaboration with the Hepatitis Prevention and Control Programme. The experts learned that most of the people were unaware of the disease and its consequences, which puts them at high risk.
The problem needs the immediate attention of the authorities, the visiting doctors stressed. Around 300 people including 150 children and 75 women were tested during the camp, after which 52 people were found with hepatitis C and four have hepatitis B.
"We found more positive cases among females than males," disclosed Prado's head Prof Dr Fateh Muhammad Burfat. "This is an alarming situation given that such a high number of cases were found from one area."
Prof Burfat said that the majority of the patients are in serious condition. "The tests will determine the level of seriousness of the disease," he explained, adding that the treatment of hepatitis C is very expensive and the people of this area could not afford it. Conducting tests are also very expensive so the organisations involved in the medical camp are trying to address the issue, he added.
When the medical team visited the village for the first time in the second week of June, the people were unwilling to get tested. Such distrust of medical practitioners, illiteracy and a lack of awareness are the reasons why this disease spread in this village, said one expert.
"The people of this village believe in treatment through injections only," Dr Mumtaz Khaskheli, the chief of HANDS' Human Institutional Development told The Express Tribune. "That is very dangerous. That is the cause of the spread of this disease in this village," he added.
A visit to the site made Dr Khaskheli believe that the area was not part of the country's largest city. "Open defecation is common in the village," he said. "People of this village are at high risk [of such diseases]."
The population of the village is about 1,000 and a majority of the residents are labourers. Their lifestyle is very simple and, according to HANDS' officials, most of them are jobless. The people of Dost Muhammad Khaskheli village are not linked to any medical facility.
The head of the provincial programme on the disease has promised to provide vaccination to the people who were found positive with the disease, said Prof Burfat.
Meanwhile, Dr Khaskheli was of the view that a proper survey is needed in the village. Women need more awareness sessions than their male counterparts. "We'll initiate a programme for the women of this village soon," he promised.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 17th, 2014.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ