Congo in Karachi

It is essential community health services are alert to risks of Congo virus, create awareness ahead of Eidul Azha

The first death this year caused by Crimean Congo Viral Heamorrhagic Fever (Congo virus) has occurred in Karachi. It was probably only a matter of time before there was a death from Congo virus, and the man that died was from a high-risk group — he was a butcher. The virus is caught from animals on which the ticks live that transmit the deadly illness, and butchers city-wide are in the front line when it comes to exposure. City health officials are claiming that all necessary precautions were taken during the man’s final days as a patient in a private hospital as well as during the burial. It is virtually certain that the deceased caught the disease from an animal he was processing, and there are going to be countless thousands of amateur butchers at work in the near future as Eidul Azha approaches.

With Eidul Azha on the horizon there is real cause for concern. Very large numbers of animals are going to be on the move, and in close proximity to the human population. There is no vaccination against the disease for humans or animals and it has a greater than 40 per cent mortality rate. The health secretary has been informed by letter of the death and is said to be taking the issue seriously as well as taking measures to control it. Control of the vectors for Congo virus is exceedingly difficult. Infected animals may not display any symptoms and injecting them with anti-tick medications is only partially effective. The previous outbreak in 2012 saw three dead, all of them people that worked with livestock. It is essential that community health services are alert to the risks of Congo virus, and it is advisable to create a public awareness campaign in advance of Eidul Azha using all available media platforms as well as mosques, which can play a positive role in raising awareness of public health issues. Hoping it will simply go away is not a solution.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 24^th, 2014.

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