Diarrhoea, typhoid — real threats for children and infants

Islamabad: Nearly 20 to 25 per cent of all child patients being presented to public and private sector healthcare facilities in this region of the country with complaints of diarrhoea while few cases are being reported with typhoid and Multi-Drug Resistant (MDR) Typhoid fever, a much more serious threat.

President Pakistan Paediatrics Association Federal Branch Professor Dr Tariq Saeed Sheikh expressed this while talking to ‘The News’ on Sunday. He added the incidences of diarrhoea and typhoid among children and infants may register a sharp increase in the weeks to come if parents do not take necessary preventive measures in time. He added that diarrhoea and typhoid are preventable diseases and can be avoided by following simple precautionary measures.

He said the main reason behind the increasing number of diarrhoea and typhoid is the consumption of contaminated water and unsafe foodstuff. To avoid these, children and infants must be given boiled water after rolling boil for one to five minutes. Parents must not allow children to consume food items from vendors and restaurants in summer and monsoon, he said.

Professor Dr Tariq said typhoid fever is common in places with poor sanitation and a lack of safe drinking water. Parents must be aware of the fact that typhoid is spread through contaminated food and water. The greater threat is MDR Typhoid fever as it is resistant to the first line of recommended drugs for treatment. Its treatment cost well over Rs100000, he said. He added to avoid diarrhoea, typhoid and like infections, hand washing with soap before eating food and after going to the toilet is a must. The number of child patients with complaints of acute diarrhoea mainly with vomiting and loose motion is continuously on the rise, he said.

He said that dehydration in children and infants due to diarrhoea is a life-threatening condition and it must be avoided with the use of ORS (Oral Rehydration Solution). The main symptom of typhoid is a continuous high-grade fever that does not subside usually and in this situation, advice from a qualified doctor is a must so that medicine can be started in time.