KARACHI, Feb 22: The Pakistan Medical Association has registered its deep concern over the recent outbreak of malaria throughout the country. In a statement issued by the PMA, Dr Shershah Syed said that despite repeated warnings by the World Health Organization
and the Federal Malaria Programme, the provincial health department has not been able to contain the situation.
While the situation in Punjab and NWFP is relatively better it is abysmally poor in Sindh and Balochistan, he maintained. Elaborating his stance, he said that 17 malignant malaria induced deaths had been registered only in Mirpurkhas district during the last three months.
He said it was also disturbing to note that the ratio of falciparum malaria in Mirpurkhas was around 50.8 per cent and in Larkana and Shikarpur the ratio had reached 80 per cent in December 2003.
The aim of any malaria programme should be to keep these ratios below 30 per cent at least, he said, adding that while majority of the districts has reported the epidemic in their monthly reports yet the authorities concerned have failed to respond.
Dr Shershah regretted that early warning system in the province appeared to have totally failed mainly because of inadequate understanding about the scenario in the health department.
In this context, he also mentioned that despite availability of adequate funding for the campaign against malaria and enough provision of drugs at all government controlled health care centres the situation appeared to be turning serious.
He stressed that all doctors working in hospitals and community should have a high level of suspicion and treat this disease aggressively. It was high time that all provincial governments should take immediate steps to fight against this falciparum malaria epidemic with full force and vigour, he said.
In Karachi, he said, the situation was not as bad as it was in the interior of the province. However, according to reports from physicians, paediatricians and general practitioners, there was a notable increase in patients with falciparum malaria.
Dr Shershah said that the provincial and city health departments should ensure that the environment remains healthy and malarial parasites are not allowed to grow in stagnant water. -APP
