KARACHI: Sindh health authorities on Wednesday confirmed that two men — one from Karachi and the other from Sanghar district — died of dengue and Congo-Crimean haemorrhagic (CCHF) fevers in city hospitals.

The death toll because of dengue has now climbed to 11; while 19 persons have died of CCHF in the province this year, officials said.

They added that a 57-year-old man, identified as Nadeem Zafar, who lived in Garden East, died at a private hospital where he was tested positive for the lethal mosquito-borne disease.

Officials said 11 people had died from dengue fever in the teeming metropolis this year as a total of 2,639 dengue cases had been reported across Sindh. Of them, 2,523 were in Karachi while the remaining 116 were reported in other districts.

CCHF

CCHF, meanwhile, claimed another life in the city as the tick-borne viral infection has claimed 19 lives so far this year.

Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) executive director Dr Seemin Jamali said Hadi Bux, a son of Mohammad Saleh, hailing from Sanghar district, was admitted to the hospital five days ago.

She said the patient was brought to the hospital with high-grade fever and was confirmed as a CCHF victim by lab tests. Hadi Bux succumbed to complications caused by the deadly infection on Wednesday morning.

Officials said CCHF had infected 39 people in total this year and 19 of them — almost 50pc — had died.

CCHF is a fatal viral disease that spreads through a tick, which lives on blood of animals. People who deal with cattle and livestock are mainly affected by it.

Backache, pain in joints and abdomen, high-grade fever and bleeding from any part of the body are among the symptoms of CCHF.

Published in Dawn, September 26th, 2019