Dengue fever outbreak gets intense

Rawalpindi : As many as 83 patients have tested positive for dengue fever from Rawalpindi district and Islamabad Capital Territory in the last 48 hours hinting that the outbreak of the infection in the region is getting intense.

To date, a total of 345 patients have been confirmed positive for dengue fever from the twin cities. Of 83 patients who tested positive in the last two days, 62 were reported in the Rawalpindi district while 21 were reported from the federal capital.

It is alarming that the burden of dengue fever patients at the three allied hospitals in town including Holy Family Hospital, Benazir Bhutto Hospital, and District Headquarters Hospital is continuously on the rise.

Data collected by ‘The News’ on Sunday reveals that as many as 107 patients were undergoing treatment at the three teaching hospitals in town including 89 patients from Rawalpindi district, 16 from Islamabad and two from District Chakwal. Of 107 patients, 97 have already been confirmed positive for dengue fever.

On Sunday, 36 dengue fever patients were undergoing treatment at BBH, 32 at DHQ Hospital, and 39 at HFH. According to District Health Department Rawalpindi, none of the admitted patients was in critical condition however it is important to mention that dengue fever has already claimed three lives in the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi.

Data reveals that as many as 62 individuals have tested positive for dengue fever in Rawalpindi in the last two days taking the tally to 338 while confirmation of another 21 patients from the federal capital has taken the tally to 107.

According to details, the dengue fever outbreak is hitting the population hard in Potohar Town, peri-urban areas from where a total of 200 confirmed patients have so far been reported. The number of dengue fever cases this year reported from Rawalpindi Cantonment Board areas is 23, Municipal Corporation Rawalpindi is 20, and from Tehsil Kahuta is 24. It is worth mentioning here that the number of patients being reported from these areas is on a continuous increase.

The most alarming is the fact that the number of patients from this region of the country has already started registering a tremendous upward trend while the peak season for transmission of dengue fever is yet to set in.