170,169 cases of dog bite reported in six months

ISLAMABAD: On an average, more than 7,400 cases of dog bite were reported every week across Pakistan in the six-month period, official data reflects. In the past six months, a total of 170,169 cases of dog bite were reported throughout the country, data acquired from National Institute of Health shows.

Punjab contributes 60 percent of the total dog bite cases reported countrywide in this time period as 103,139 cases were reported from the most-populated province. Sindh reported a total of 49,268 cases of dog bite in the past six months which is almost 29 percent of the total cases. An average of 2,142 cases of dog bite occurred per week in Sindh. It is pertinent to mention here that the actual number of total dog bite cases are bigger than the total figure mentioned above as many cases are not being reported. A source in the federal Health Department told The News that the number of dog bite cases in Sindh may be double as most such cases happen in far-flung areas of the province where health facilities are poor.

Health experts believe that dogs are responsible for 99 percent of rabies cases in Pakistan which is a serious and underfunded problem in the country. Local estimates suggest that 2,000 to 5,000 people die from rabies in Pakistan each year. However, Only 22 percent of the population is aware of the fatality of rabies, and 42 percent don't know the signs and symptoms of the disease.

The federal capital reported five dog bite cases in the past six months. Whereas from Gilgit-Baltistan 78 cases were reported in past six months with an average of approximately three dog bite cases per week. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa reported 2,184 cases in this time period with an average of 95 cases per week. From Balochistan 3,191 cases were reported in six months with an average of 138 cases per week. In Azad Jammu and Kashmir, 2,301 cases occurred from June till November this year with an average of 100 cases per week.