Death toll rises to 18 as dengue claims one more life

Dengue fever claimed one more life at a private hospital on Wednesday, raising the death toll from the mosquito-borne disease to 18, health officials said.

A 35-year old woman, Samreen, a resident of the Metroville area, with dengue shock syndrome was taken to a private hospital on Tuesday night where she passed away due to complications caused by the disease, an official of the Sindh Health Department said, adding that several more patients were in critical care due to the vector-borne disease in the city.

Officials said over 300 patients had been tested positive for the mosquito-borne disease after lab analysis in different hospitals in the city on Wednesday, adding over 5,400 dengue cases were reported during the current year.

In the first 15 days of the current month, 2,300 patients had so far been tested positive for the dengue fever, and some hospitals did not even share the data of the dengue patients.

Dr Saqib Ansari, an eminent physician of blood diseases, said hundreds of patients were reporting to various public and private hospitals with dengue fever, malaria and XDR Typhoid and added that it was the responsibility of the people to take care of their families and surroundings on their own.

"People should carry out fumigation in their areas on a self-help basis, use mosquito repellents, drink clean water and avoid eating outside. Prevention is the best policy, authorities neither take care of people's health, nor they have any concern for the healthcare needs of the people," Dr Ansari said.