RATODERO: As many as 56 more suspected cases of HIV were detected after screening of 1,118 people at Ratodero taluka hospital and one-day screening camps set up in villages near the town on Friday, raising the total number of infected persons to 331 in 13 days.

Of the 56 suspected cases, 39 were children and 17 were adults.

In a camp in Tayab village, as many as 198 people were screened (63 male, 47 female and 88 children) and of them a six-year-old boy tested HIV positive whereas in Subhani Shar village, 250 cases were screened and six were detected HIV positive.

Provincial health secretary Saeed Ahmed Awan said during his visit of the camps that over 3,000 people had been screened out of which 226 tested HIV positive. When they were rechecked 113 cases were confirmed, he said, adding that treatment of 88 infected children was under way. He blamed malpractice by quacks and some qualified doctors for the spread of HIV in Ratodero and said the disease spread within a short period due to lack of awareness.

He said that a joint strategy was being prepared by health department, National AIDS Control Programme, international donors such as Global Fund, WHO, Unicef and others to control the virus and provide treatment to the affected people.

He said the detected cases were still suspected and more tests would be conducted to confirm them after which the infected persons would be provided treatment.

Meanwhile, Directorate General of Health Services Hyderabad in its summary dated May 8 said that 221 HIV positive cases had been detected in Ratodero out of 5,224 number of persons screened from April 25 to May 8, in which 124 (56 per cent) were male and 97 (44pc) were female, 13 cases were up to one year, 126 cases between 2-5 years, 47 cases between 6-15 years, 33 between 14-45 years and two cases were 46 or above. All the cases were detected through Rapid Diagnostic Test (RDT) carried out by Sindh AIDS Control Programme, he said.

On Thursday, 938 people were screened and of them 65 were found HIV positive, said the sources.—PPI

Our Shikarpur Correspondent adds: District Health Officer Dr Shabeer Ahmed Shaikh said on Friday that 11 people, among them 10 children and one adult, tested positive after blood screening of several persons in eight villages of the district during past three weeks.

The fresh campaign against HIV virus in the district was launched after seven HIV cases surfaced in Dakhan village and nearby areas.

Shikarpur Deputy Commissioner Rahim Bux Metlo informed this correspondent that more than 100 illegal dispensaries, maternity homes and laboratories were sealed in Shikarpur, Khan­pur, Garhi Yaseen and Lakhi towns in ongoing crackdown against quacks and unregistered medical stores.

Legal action would be taken against the violators under the law and FIRs would be lodged against the quacks, he said.

When the DHO’s focal person Nazeer Ahmed was asked to provide list of illegal dispensaries, maternity homes, laboratories and medical stores which were sealed he avoided to share the details.

A Mithi Correspondent adds: Two persons tested positive for HIV after screening tests conducted in different areas of Thar.

Deputy MS of Mithi Civil Hospital Dr Chaman Sharma said that two persons from Diplo town tested positive for the virus.

Published in Dawn, May 11th, 2019