Allied hospitals receiving two cases of dengue fever per day

Rawalpindi

The three teaching hospitals in town are still receiving two confirmed cases of dengue fever on an average per day though the outbreak has almost come to an end some two weeks and the cases being reported at present are taken as sporadic cases of the infection by the health experts.

Data collected by 'The News' on Tuesday reveals that the allied hospitals have tested a total of 18 patients positive for dengue fever in last nine days after which the total number of confirmed cases so far registered at the allied hospitals reached 3,911 that has set a new record by crossing the total number of dengue fever patients reported during the previous nine years in the district from 2006 to 2014.

At present a total of 12 patients including confirmed and probable cases are being undergoing treatment at Holy Family Hospital, while no patient of the infection is under treatment at dengue fever wards of Benazir Bhutto Hospital and District Headquarters Hospital.

As many as three patients including one each of dengue fever, dengue hemorrhagic fever and dengue shock syndrome were undergoing treatment at high dependency unit of the HFH on Tuesday, however, they are not in much critical condition.

The dengue fever outbreak this year has claimed a total of 13 lives at the allied hospitals, 10 at HFH and three at BBH.

In last 24 hours, only three patients visited dengue outpatient department at DHQ Hospital while no patient visited dengue OPD at BBH. The dengue OPD at the HFH, however, received 11 patients of which only two were registered as probable cases of the infection.

According to details, the HFH tested a total of 1601 patients positive for the infection this year while as many as 1,810 have been tested positive for dengue fever at the BBH. The DHQ Hospital received a total of 500 confirmed cases of dengue fever this year.

Health experts say that the setting in of winter, extreme fall in temperature has already knocked out the dengue fever outbreak in this region of the country, however, the greater number of confirmed cases this year is alarming as the outbreak next year may be much more severe and deadly if proper preventive measures are not taken well in time.