Dr M Shakeel Aamir Mullick, head of Dengue Surveillance Cell Sindh, revealed that the recent rise in dengue viral fever cases would continue till start of winter season and it is also responsibility of citizens to adopt preventative measures to save them from this disease.
He said that the dengue viral fever has entered a dangerous phase which had started from August 15th and will continue till October 15th. He said strict precautionary measures are necessary to prevent one from dengue fever.
He informed that 10 dengue patients have already died in Karachi this year, while 810 cases reported so far in the city and 31 cases have been detected in the rest of Sindh province. He further informed that over 100 dengue fever cases were reported in the city and four patients also died in Karachi in last few days.
He urged the citizens to keep their food items and water properly covered at homes and workplace. He said stagnant water must not be allowed to accumulate in any part of the city and citizens should adopt preventative measures also at their homes in this regard, especially after monsoon rains. He said provincial health authorities are discharging the duties honestly and now the citizens should also realize their duties to save them and their families from the dengue fever.
Mullick said that with the recent monsoon rains in the city the peak season of the virus has already begun and precautionary measures at this stage are a must. He urged the people to properly cover themselves from their wrists to collars and their ankles from mosquitoes. He advised use of mosquito repellents and anti-mosquito coils. He said sprays at homes are also necessary to destroy the breeding points of mosquitoes and to stop further prevalence of this disease.
He said dengue fever symptoms included headache, a skin rash that looked like measles, pain in the muscles and joints, and pain in eyes. He said dengue fever cases are also being reported in other provinces, but the number of cases is high in Karachi as compared to other cities of Pakistan. He said tall buildings, demographics changes, lack of proper disposal of garbage and open drains are main causes behind the widespread dengue fever in Karachi.
He informed that 18 cases have been detected in Hyderabad, one in Larkana, one in Dadu, two in Kambar, one in Khairpur, two in Sanghar, one in Naushehro Feroz, two in Shikarpur, two in Thatta and one in Kashmore since January 2013. He said overall situation would improve in October with start of winter season.
He urged the people to take all precautionary measures as keeping in mind the warnings of health department and wear full sleeve clothes and use bed nets and other measures to keep mosquitoes away.
News source: OnePakistan.com