Pakistan: 79 new dengue cases in Punjab raise health concerns
Nov 11, 2024
Rawalpindi [Pakistan], November 11: The Health Department of Pakistan's Punjab has reported 65 new cases of dengue fever in the Rawalpindi district of Pakistan with 79 new cases in the province.
ARY News reported the majority of dengue fever cases are in Rawalpindi, followed by four cases in Chakwal and two in Sialkot. Lahore, Attock, Faisalabad, Sahiwal, Kasur, Chiniot, Gujrat, and Okara witnessed one case each.
As of now, 6,838 cases of dengue fever have been recorded in Pakistan's Punjab province, which is experiencing a peak in dengue.
Health officials have urged people to stay safe by getting rid of stagnant water from their homes. This will help in eliminating the dengue fever from the province, reported ARY News.
According to ARY News, the officials further highlighted the importance of public cooperation and preventive measures to combat the fever.
Recently in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Peshawar city, 891 dengue cases were recorded, taking the total case tally over 3000 cases in the province.
The residents raised concerns over the rise in dengue cases. A resident lamented, "Health authorities only remember to spray for mosquitoes when the season is in full swing. Our area is a dengue hotspot, with numerous cases reported each year, yet there has been no awareness campaign or fumigation efforts so far".
Earlier, the Deputy Commissioner declared a dengue emergency in the Rawalpindi district to combat the virus.
Dengue as described by the World Health Organisation (WHO) is an infectious disease that affects people through mosquito bites. Currently, more than half of the population of the world is threatened with the disease with the forecasted epidemic being in the number of 100-400 million cases per year.
"Prevention and control of dengue depend on vector control. There is no specific treatment for dengue/severe dengue, and early detection and access to proper medical care greatly lower fatality rates of severe dengue," the WHO said.
