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Dengue fever outbreak kills 10 in Pakistan's Punjab province
By Jamil Bhatti
ISLAMABAD, Sept. 9 (Xinhua) -- The recent wave of dengue fever that hit Pakistan's eastern province of Punjab, especially its provincial capital Lahore, killed at least 10 people and affected 2,256 others.
The provincial health authorities have been desperately struggling to overcome the epidemic over last month, but the situation was not controlled yet. The dengue fever has spread panic among the residents of Lahore as over 2,000 affected patients were from the provincial capital.
About 300 people took blood tests on Thursday and around 200 of them were dengue affected which reflected the severance of the issue.
Dengue, an acute febrile disease spread by the bite of the mosquito has been endemic in Pakistan for the last few years. It spreads most often after the rainy season in July and August when pools of standing water serve as ideal mosquito breeding spots.
According to statistics released by the National Institute of Health (NIH) on Thursday, there have been 2,256 confirmed cases of dengue in Punjab, 130 in Islamabad and neighboring city Rawalpindi. In the southern province of Sindh and northwestern province of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, there have been 170 and 18 cases respectively, including one death in each province.
Health experts said that lack of in-depth study on this subject is the main reason why dengue breaks out in Pakistan every year.
An official revealed that dengue has gone out of the government 's control because the disease had not been expected to spread in 2011 and the government took no precautionary measures beforehand.
He, on condition of anonymity, told Xinhua that the authorities had thought that dengue would spread every other year, and since it hit Punjab in 2010, it had been expected to reappear in 2012.
"The awareness and prevention campaign in Lahore and Punjab started very late. The teams responsible for preventive spraying in the city used ineffective chemicals which were unable to destroy the breeding ground of mosquitoes carrying dengue," he said.
Dr Muhammad Aslam Khan, adviser in World Health Organisation ( WHO), said "these sprays cannot kill dengue. Officials will have to adopt the right method to deal with dengue, first identifying and then spraying the WHO recognized chemicals at the places where mosquitoes carrying dengue lay eggs."
Diagnostic and Research Lab Infection Control Officer Dr Tayyba Ijaz said that the current outbreak showed that the virus had grown stronger and only proper research can find ways to eradicate it.
Pakistan Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani and President Asif Ali Zardari showed their concerns about the disease and extended full support to the Punjab government in coping with the growing number of cases of dengue fever.
Acting on reports that the virus was spreading rapidly and that measures to control it had been unsuccessful, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has presided over series of meetings, visited many hospitals and ordered the immediate suspension of the Lahore district health officer for failing to control the epidemic.
He also set up a task force comprising a government minister, health officials and doctors to suggest measures to curb the virus.
A political party, The All Pakistan Muslim League (APML), has appealed to the Lahore High Court to summon Punjab Chief Minister to court in person and probe into why they failed to control dengue fever wave in time.
The government has also started a media campaign to advise the public not to allow water to stand in containers, to use mosquito repellents, spray homes and be particularly vigilant at dawn and twilight when the dengue-carrying mosquitoes usually bite.
The campaign said if anyone gets high fever, severe body pain, itching and red spots, bleeding from nose and teeth and severe pain in the eyes, one should quickly go to hospital for proper tests and checkup.
By Jamil Bhatti
ISLAMABAD, Sept. 9 (Xinhua) -- The recent wave of dengue fever that hit Pakistan's eastern province of Punjab, especially its provincial capital Lahore, killed at least 10 people and affected 2,256 others.
The provincial health authorities have been desperately struggling to overcome the epidemic over last month, but the situation was not controlled yet. The dengue fever has spread panic among the residents of Lahore as over 2,000 affected patients were from the provincial capital.
About 300 people took blood tests on Thursday and around 200 of them were dengue affected which reflected the severance of the issue.
Dengue, an acute febrile disease spread by the bite of the mosquito has been endemic in Pakistan for the last few years. It spreads most often after the rainy season in July and August when pools of standing water serve as ideal mosquito breeding spots.
According to statistics released by the National Institute of Health (NIH) on Thursday, there have been 2,256 confirmed cases of dengue in Punjab, 130 in Islamabad and neighboring city Rawalpindi. In the southern province of Sindh and northwestern province of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, there have been 170 and 18 cases respectively, including one death in each province.
Health experts said that lack of in-depth study on this subject is the main reason why dengue breaks out in Pakistan every year.
An official revealed that dengue has gone out of the government 's control because the disease had not been expected to spread in 2011 and the government took no precautionary measures beforehand.
He, on condition of anonymity, told Xinhua that the authorities had thought that dengue would spread every other year, and since it hit Punjab in 2010, it had been expected to reappear in 2012.
"The awareness and prevention campaign in Lahore and Punjab started very late. The teams responsible for preventive spraying in the city used ineffective chemicals which were unable to destroy the breeding ground of mosquitoes carrying dengue," he said.
Dr Muhammad Aslam Khan, adviser in World Health Organisation ( WHO), said "these sprays cannot kill dengue. Officials will have to adopt the right method to deal with dengue, first identifying and then spraying the WHO recognized chemicals at the places where mosquitoes carrying dengue lay eggs."
Diagnostic and Research Lab Infection Control Officer Dr Tayyba Ijaz said that the current outbreak showed that the virus had grown stronger and only proper research can find ways to eradicate it.
Pakistan Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani and President Asif Ali Zardari showed their concerns about the disease and extended full support to the Punjab government in coping with the growing number of cases of dengue fever.
Acting on reports that the virus was spreading rapidly and that measures to control it had been unsuccessful, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has presided over series of meetings, visited many hospitals and ordered the immediate suspension of the Lahore district health officer for failing to control the epidemic.
He also set up a task force comprising a government minister, health officials and doctors to suggest measures to curb the virus.
A political party, The All Pakistan Muslim League (APML), has appealed to the Lahore High Court to summon Punjab Chief Minister to court in person and probe into why they failed to control dengue fever wave in time.
The government has also started a media campaign to advise the public not to allow water to stand in containers, to use mosquito repellents, spray homes and be particularly vigilant at dawn and twilight when the dengue-carrying mosquitoes usually bite.
The campaign said if anyone gets high fever, severe body pain, itching and red spots, bleeding from nose and teeth and severe pain in the eyes, one should quickly go to hospital for proper tests and checkup.
