PESHAWAR: Amid decline in the cases of dengue haemorrhagic fever mainly due to drop in temperature, the health department has launched training for doctors, lady health workers and staff of municipal bodies to eliminate mosquitoes as part of Dengue Action Plan.

The plan implemented in December last year is meant to develop an integrated approach towards prevention, control and management of infected people in collaboration with 19 line departments.

Officials said that that on the directives of Chief Secretary Dr Shahzad Khan Bangash, health department was taking measures for environmental management of the virus to cut down incidence of the vector-born disease, which was endemic in the province, next year.

“Prevention requires many methods but we are going for environmental, which is safe and durable and does not cause any harm,” they said.

Medics and municipal staff being trained to eliminate mosquito larva

According to a report of Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response System Directorate-General Health Services, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the total number of infections from the virus reached 19,327 with 167 new cases detected on Wednesaday.

Entomologist Salahuddin Khan said that environmental management meant to maintain cleanliness to do away with larva and eggs to reduce production of mosquitoes and control the disease.

“The government has deployed 36 medical entomologists for eradication of mosquitoes, the sole carrier of the virus, and training of field staff on identification of larva and eggs and elimination strategies,” he said. He added that it was the only permanent solution to control dengue in high-risk Peshawar, Mardan, Khyber, Nowshera and other districts.

“Ending standing water pools through application of larvicides and insecticide or other biological methods, community awareness to tell people that storage of water in uncovered pots, air-coolers and flower pots etc is a source of mosquitoes. First, we are giving priority to environmental management, which has no harms, while spray also endangers human lives if applied excessively. The role of community is vital to get rid of dengue,” said Dr Salahuddin.

He said that training of doctors on clinical examination of suspected people, signs and symptoms and collection of samples along with management of positive cases was an ongoing process.

He said that the chief secretary, the head of Dengue Action Plan 2021, had released emergency funds of Rs17 million for procurement of chemicals, medicines, investigation kits and bed nets. He said that among the 218 union councils, 18 were high-risk, 25 medium and 175 low-risk for dengue infection for which collaborative work had been started to destroy larva in houses and at community level through multi-sectoral approach.

The public health specialists said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa detected 24,938 dengue cases and 70 deaths in 2017 with 0.28 per cent mortality rate and 94.3 per cent detection rate in Peshawar. The provincial capital continues to record most dengue cases every year. It has recorded 50 per cent of the overall cases in the province this year.

They said that the virus was less severe in the current as it killed only 15 persons in the province but morbidity was the highest in the past five years.

Experts said that a rain would eradicate dengue virus but the preventive strategy was needed to stop production of mosquitoes, which caused the disease by bites. They feared that dengue would break out next year slowly in April and would reach its peak in September and October, the known pattern of the diseases. Environment remains clean in those areas where electricity and water are available. The residents of such areas stay unexposed to mosquito bites.

Published in Dawn, November 3rd, 2022