PESHAWAR: Authorities have shown concern over lack of proper data of medical teaching institutions and private hospitals regarding dengue cases as rains have posed threats of rise in incidence of the mosquito-borne ailment in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The province has so far recorded 43 dengue cases, including 18 in Peshawar, five in Bannu, three each in Swabi, Karak and Kohat, two each in Chitral Lower, Mardan and Swabi.

The number of suspected dengue patients in the province is 280, according to a report released by Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response System (IDS&RS) at Directorate-General Health Services.

Health officials said that situation regarding dengue patients in the province was under control but the recent rains escalated fears of rise in the cases because stagnant water pools could provide breeding sites to mosquitoes, the carriers and transmitters of the disease.

Officials say rains can cause increase in incidence of the disease

They said that rainfalls, temperature and humidity were among the main causes of spread of the disease.

They said that they wanted to address those issues to deny breeding spots to mosquitoes.

“Rainfalls may lead to rise in vector population and extend the life span of mosquitoes for which line departments, especially municipalities should swing into action to eliminate pools of stagnant water,” they added.

Officials told this scribe that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was endemic to dengue, which had become a recurring issue due to which doctors and healthcare providers developed latest techniques regarding diagnostics and management services.

However, the breeding points needed to be eliminated to do away with mosquitoes and avoid outbreaks of the disease, they said.

“So far, no death from dengue has been reported in the province and no patient has been hospitalised,” they said. Health department has already issued guidelines to all hospitals regarding management of dengue cases and establishment of isolation wards at each of the district health quarters and medical teaching institutions (MTIs).

“The other main challenge is that health department is not receiving proper data about dengue patients from MTIs as well as private clinics and hospitals. It is hampering the plan to devise comprehensive strategy for prevention and control of the disease,” said officials.

Health department has also deployed more than 40 entomologists, mostly in districts which are reporting more dengue cases, to take measures for controlling mosquito population.

They said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Health Care Commission was asked to ensure that private clinical laboratories, clinics and hospitals shared data about patients but response was not up to the desired level.

In 2025, the province reported a total of 6,281 dengue cases and four deaths from the disease.

Most of the cases were reported from Charsadda district due to violent outbreak in its two union councils.

Officials said that they had strengthened surveillance throughout the province to prevent any outbreak of the disease.

They said that mainstay of dengue virus was Peshawar, which was a transit point to population from other districts as well as from Punjab.

Last year, initial dengue cases had been transported by people from Punjab where the disease occurred every year and was then spread to local population, they added.

Officials said that relevant committees at district level were holding meetings in line with Dengue Action Plan (DAP) 2026 under which all line departments were tasked to carry out appropriate activities.

However, people store water in uncovered pots owing to power outages that serve as breeding spots for mosquitoes.

Automobile workshops are also among the causative agents, where water remains in tyres to produce mosquitoes.

“If DAP is implemented in letter and spirit, the disease will remain under control. Otherwise, it will continue to infect people like previous years,” said officials.

Published in Dawn, May 11th, 2026