ISLAMABAD, Oct 18: The National Institute of Health has so far processed 118 samples of suspected dengue fever and found 65 of them positive.

Chief Public Health Division Dr Birjees M Kazi told reporters here at the Health Ministry that out of 65, 45 blood samples were received from Karachi, three each from Khushab and Kotli and one from Rawalpindi. Twenty-six samples are under process.

He said prevention was the only way to check the spread of the disease as there was no vaccine available in the world. Fortunately, the disease did not transmit through human contact.

Referring to Karachi outbreak, Dr Kazi explained that ten different hospitals have received at least 888 suspected patients by Tuesday, of which 162 have been admitted. Approximately, 35 to 50 patients are being admitted daily in Karachi while the provincial diagnostic laboratories have identified 248 samples to be dengue positive.

So far 18 deaths have been reported in the current spell due to the disease with a case fatality rate of 2.1 per cent, Dr Kazi said. The current spike is the continuation of last year’s outbreak, affecting 300 people, of which ten died.

Dengue viruses are transmitted to humans through the bites of infective female “aedes mosquitoes,” which generally acquire the virus while feeding on the blood of an infected person. After virus incubation for 8 to 10 days, an infected mosquito is capable, during probing and blood feeding, of transmitting the virus for the rest of its life to susceptible individuals.

Infected female mosquitoes may also transmit the virus to their offspring by transovarial (via the eggs) transmission, but the role of this in sustaining transmission of virus to humans has not yet been delineated.

The virus circulates in the blood of infected humans for two to seven days, at approximately the same time as they have fever; Aedes mosquitoes may acquire the virus when they feed on an individual during this period.

Dengue fever is a severe, flu-like illness that affects infants, young children and adults, but seldom causes death.

The breeding takes place only in containers, drums, buckets which contain clean water. The mosquito thrives in cool and dark environment. The post-monsoon period of September to October each year is always known to be favourable for the breeding of the mosquito.

There are four distinct, but closely related viruses that cause dengue and all of them are prevalent in the country, he said adding once bitten, the people should take extra care by adopting preventive measures since there was no treatment available if the fever converts into DHF by a second bite.

“The best check to prevent the spread of this fever is to provide regular and uninterrupted supply of water in houses so that the people should not store water for drinking purposes since vector of this disease thrives on clean water,” Director Malaria Control Programme Dr Faisal Mansoor told Dawn.

Meanwhile, Minister of State for Health Shahnaz Sheikh explained that since the disease spreads through mosquitoes, bed nets in bulk quantity along with adequate supplies of larvicides (spray) have been provided by the federal health ministry to the Sindh Health Department.

Teams of the health ministry, World Health Organization (WHO) and NIH are also monitoring the situation alongside providing technical guidance to the doctors and health workers.

Prevention should begin from home, she emphasized adding that the people should keep their homes and offices protected against mosquitoes through the use of bed nets while sleeping, placing fixed nets on doors and windows, not leaving overhead water tanks open, removing flower pots, plant holdings and other possible places of mosquito breeding from within the homes, using mosquito repellent lotion on the body and mosquito coils and mats.

Islamabad is also providing complete laboratory support and blood samples of suspected cases are being received daily from Karachi, she said.

Our reporter from Pindi adds: Executive District Officer (health) Dr Zafar Iqbal Gondal has advised the people to keep drinking water properly covered, fumigate their houses and properly cover their bodies while sleeping to protect themselves against the deadly dengue fever. He said in case of any symptoms including fever, vomiting and body pain, a doctor must be consulted.

In a statement, he said dengue fever spread through the bite of an infected mosquito and gradually transmitted to the human body. He said the favourable breeding grounds for the dengue mosquito were dark places indoors and cool and sheded sites outdoors.

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