Dengue claims year’s 13th life in Sindh

Dengue claimed another life in Karachi on Friday as a young man died due to dengue shock syndrome during treatment at a private hospital, health officials said.

After the recent death, the total number of deaths due to dengue in Sindh this year have reached 13. “Muhammad Amir Khan, 31, was taken to a private hospital five days back where he was diagnosed with dengue viral infection but due to unavailability of space, he was sent back home. Two days back, his condition deteriorated and he was shifted to a private hospital where he died today,” an official of the health department said on Friday.

Ironically, officials of the provincial dengue prevention and control programme were unaware of any death caused by dengue in the city on Friday. When media persons approached them to confirm the death, they said no new dengue-related deaths had been reported to them by any hospital in the city.

However, the management of the Memon Medical Institute (MMI) in Karachi confirmed that 31-year old Amir had succumbed to the complications of dengue, especially dengue shock syndrome, at the intensive care unit of the hospital. They added that the patient was given conventional treatment during his stay at the health facility but he could not survive.

The entire country has been in the grip of dengue after recent rains as daily hundreds of cases of the mosquito-borne disease are being reported from different parts of the country, officials said.

“Use mosquito repellents, wear full-sleeved clothes, don’t let water accumulate at your homes and surroundings and conduct fumigation in the residential areas to get rid of mosquitoes,” said Dr Adnan Ahmed, an expert of infectious diseases.

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has also taken notice of the dengue outbreak in the province. On Thursday, directives were issued by the CM to major hospitals of Sindh to keep their emergency services functional round the clock. The CM also directed the hospitals’ management to ensure separate wards for dengue patients and availability of nets for dengue patients.