HARIPUR, Oct 29: At least 27 patients have been diagnosed with dengue fever in different villages of Khanpur during the past four days. According to some villagers, 15 other patients, including 10 women, died of symptoms similar to the virus in the last one-and-a-half months.

However, the health department did not confirm any deaths and said there were only 27 cases of the virus, and all patients were in stable condition.

During a visit to the affected villages, inhabitants told Dawn that every fourth house had one or two patients suffering either from high fever, back pain, headache, vomiting or loss of appetite.

“About 35 per cent of the population is suffering from the disease and over a dozen have died of it in our villages,” said Tahir Mehmood, a resident of village Wijian.

Mushtaq Ahmed, a resident of village Chach, said his wife was diagnosed with the deadly virus at the Shifa International Hospital in Islamabad and added that there was profuse bleeding from her mouth and nose the day she died.

Malik Nazir Ahmed, former naib nazim Khanpur, also claimed that over a dozen people had died of the disease and said there were many villagers suffering from high fever. He described the situation as alarming.

Dengue was first detected in the district in 2003 and 10 deaths were reported back then.

EDO health Maj (retd) Dr Siddiqu-ur-Rehman said a team of doctors and paramedics had collected blood samples from the area and conceded that 27 were tested positive.

He said the health department had sprayed the area with pesticides in September but despite the preventive steps, the disease was spreading.

Dr Rehman said he had written to the National Malaria Control Programme in Islamabad to send a team of entomologists to the area immediately and investigate the situation.