PESHAWAR: Dengue incidence in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has declined in the last four days following a drop in temperature, claims the health department.

On Monday, the health department recorded 56 dengue cases, which took the province’s overall tally to 2,991.

A health department report said that 39 cases were admitted to hospitals, with the number of active patients standing at 419.

It added that a day ago, 44 dengue cases were reported in the province.

Officials say rains would almost eliminate fever

Of the total cases, 1,012 (33.83pc) have been reported in Peshawar, according to officials.

They said the current month had been the worst in terms of cases, which totalled 2,087.

Health officials said that the incidence of the vector-borne disease was going to further decline as mosquitoes, the carrier of the virus, could not survive in low temperatures.

They said the onset of the winter season had always proved a blessing for the province, which had been endemic for dengue since 2010.

The officials said the disease normally began to spread in March and recorded the highest incidence in mid-October, but in the current month, it had hit the province hard, especially Peshawar, Abbottabad, Nowshera, Charsadda, Swabi, Mansehra, Abbottabad, Hangu, Lower Kohistan and Kohat districts.

They said the mosquito-borne disease was widespread as cases were coming in from all districts but falling temperatures had brightened hopes that the incidence would continue to decline.

The officials said that the congestive environment and comparatively warm climate had been helping the virus emerge every year, infecting people, especially in Peshawar.

They said a spell of rain would nearly eradicate dengue for the current year as it would further bring down temperature.

However, physicians at medical teaching institutions argue that the government should focus on the elimination of mosquito breeding sites through regular interventions.

They told Dawn that in the last one year, surveillance had improved due to the deployment of entomologists, who reported the presence of larva in the field that was followed by corrective measures.

The doctors said most people were not concerned about dengue due to lower mortality rate as the disease had not killed as many people as it did in 2017 when 70 people lost life and 25,000 got admitted to hospitals.

They also said only two deaths from dengue had been reported in Nowshera this year as health workers had vast experience of managing cases.

Last year, the province reported just 747 dengue cases with no death, while 18 mortalities and 22,960 cases occurred in 2022. In 2021, 10 people died, with a total of 10,615 people being infected with the fever.

The doctors said more mosquitoes meant that bites would take place, infections would rise, but once the number of transmitters decreased, dengue incidence would decline.

They said the health department had dedicated isolation wards in every hospital for dengue patients but the main reason was mosquito production, which needed to be reduced through coordination of all relevant departments.

The doctors said a few cases would continue to emerge even in the winter season due to the presence of mosquitoes in surroundings.

They called for better public awareness about the elimination of stagnant water and prevention of water storage in uncovered utensils.

Published in Dawn, October 29th, 2024