RAWALPINDI / PESHAWAR:Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Minister for Health Shahram Khan Tarakai has welcomed the teams sent by the Punjab government for providing support against the dengue outbreak in Peshawar.
“Teams sent by the Punjab government have expressed their willingness to work according to the plan laid out by the K-P government,” said the health minister while addressing a press conference on Monday. He was flanked by Deputy Commissioner Peshawar Muhammad Asif and MPA Arif Yousaf.
“We will learn from each other’s experiences,” said Khan, adding that the teams would be provided with all facilitates to help eliminate the virus.
“Five persons have died in Peshawar due to the dengue virus,” said the minister, adding that K-P would defeat dengue virus like it did in case of the poliovirus.
Three cases in Rawalpindi
On Monday, three cases of dengue fever were reported at two different hospitals in Rawalpindi.
A 10-year-old boy was diagnosed with the deadly virus at the Holy Family Hospital (HFH) while two other patients were suffering from it at the Benazir Bhutto Hospital (BBH).
In the first case, Ahmed Jamil of PWD Colony in Rawalpindi was brought to HFH on August 20 with complains of fever, headache and muscle pain. His blood serology was sent to the National Institute of Health after which the authorities on August 21 confirmed that Jamil was suffering from dengue. Ahmed is said to have travelled to Karachi recently.
At BBH, a 35-year-old woman, Farkhanda, has been confirmed to have contracted the virus. She is reported to have travelled to Peshawar recently.
Another patient, 16-year-old Yaqoob, was also confirmed as suffering from dengue at BBH. He was brought to the hospital a day earlier with complains of headache and high fever.
With the addition of three more cases, the total number of dengue patients in public hospitals of Rawalpindi has reached five.
WHO report on Peshawar
An investigation report by the World Health Organisation (WHO) on dengue outbreak in Peshawar has revealed that the presence of a huge number of uncovered water containers used in houses and at workshops is the main reason for the outbreak.
Following the cases reported from Peshawar, a five-member WHO team moved to the city to investigate the reasons behind the dengue epidemic. The team collected samples from two main areas – Tehkal and Gujran Muhalla.
The report, a copy of which is available with The Express Tribune, revealed that 87% of the samples collected from 23 water containers in the Civil Dispensary area of Tehkal tested positive for dengue virus. Similarly, 79% of the total 19 samples of water containers in Gujran Muhallah also tested positive.
The report states that these localities have a huge number of wood workshops and motor mechanic workshops with huge quantities of water-holding waste materials.
It was recommended in the report that mosquito repellents like DEET lotion or sprays be provided to families and school children through lady health workers.
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