KARACHI: The World Health Organization (WHO) officials in Pakistan on Thursday handed over a standard kit of medicines and equipment to the Sindh health department for the treatment of ‘opportunistic infections’ and nutritional deficiencies among the children testing positive for HIV in Ratodero, Larkana, and also pledged to provide the required number of diagnostic kits for screening a large number of people for HIV.
On the request from the provincial and national AIDS control programs, the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has also started emergency procurement of Antiretroviral Therapy (ARV) medicines for the 712 persons, including 580 children, who tested positive for HIV, WHO officials told The News, saying hopefully, the required number of ARVs would be delivered to the treatment centers within the next four to six weeks.
“Today, the WHO’s Country Representative, Dr. Palitha Gunarathna Mahipala, along with an international team of experts and epidemiologists handed over medicines and equipment for the treatment of 3,000 people in Larkana. They also pledged to provide required number of diagnostic kits to screen a larger number of population of HIV in the affected area”, an official of the Sindh health department told The News.
The international team of experts, including epidemiologists, pediatricians, hematologists, diagnostic experts along with WHO and UNAIDS officials, held a detailed meeting with Sindh Health Minister Dr. Azra Pechuho and other officials on Thursday and pledged all possible assistance in assessment, investigation, treatment and management of an HIV outbreak in the Ratodero.
The official maintained that WHO representatives have provided the standard kit of medicines and equipment as ‘first-aid’ to the infected people. He said the provincial health authorities have also acquired the funds for the purchase of HIV diagnostic kits.
“The WHO has asked us to send a requisition for the diagnostic kits which would be provided to the health department at the earliest. We have requested the international health agencies to provide us 240,000 diagnostic kits, including 20,000 each for secondary and tertiary confirmation of the suspected HIV cases,” said the health department officials.
On the other hand, the international team of epidemiologists led by Dr. Oliver Morgan from WHO headquarters in Geneva, formed four working groups, including one for the ‘Epidemiology, Data Management’, ‘Care and Management’, ‘Blood Transfusion and IPC’ and ‘Community Response’ to health local authorities in dealing with the ongoing HIV outbreak.
“We have started working and would continue our work till June 3, 2019 in Larkana. The teams would concentrate on the tasks and would share the information every evening in Larkana,” one of the experts of the international rapid response team said.
The WHO officials said on the request from the National AIDS Control Programme of Pakistan and international health agencies, the Global Fund has started emergency procurement of ARVs or medicines to treat HIV infection, adding the first consignment of required medicines is expected to delivered to the treatment centers with next four to six weeks. “As majority of the HIV infected people include children who are of two to five years of age, they require Antiretroviral Therapy (ARVs) medicines in syrup or granule forms and in this regard, the Global Fund has launched an emergency procurement drive on the request from the NACP,” said Dr. Safdar Kamal Pasha, a WHO official in Pakistan. Dr. Pasha said the final decision for provision of diagnostic kits to the Sindh health department would be taken by the WHO Country Representative in Pakistan Dr. Palitha Gunarathna Mahipala on Monday.
Talking to The News, officials of the international rapid response team comprising international health experts and epidemiologists declared the HIV/AIDS outbreak in Ratodero area of Larkana as ‘something new and strange’ that has not been reported from any other part of the world. The team of international health experts and epidemiologists pledged to find out answers as to why such a large number of children were infected with the lethal virus “in a confined area in such a short span of time”.
“The investigation conducted by the local health authorities so far are only based on hypothesis and assumptions that over 580 children out of 712 people who tested positive for HIV contracted the infection through injections. There are still several questions which are required to be answered so preventive measures could be adopted to prevent such outbreaks any other place in Pakistan, in the region and rest of the world”, said one of the member of an international rapid response team.
Headed by Dr. Oliver Morgan, Director of Health Emergency Information and Risk Assessment, in the Health Emergencies Program of World Health Organization (WHO), an 11-member international team comprising experts from CDC Atlanta, Georgia USA, Unicef and UNAIDS held a detailed meeting with Sindh Health Minister Dr. Azra Pechuho, provincial health officials, experts from the Aga Khan University, Dow University of Health Sciences (DUHS) discussed in detail the ongoing HIV outbreak in Ratodero and planned to start their epidemiological investigation into the outbreak in Larkana.