Dengue outbreak close to seasonal end

Rawalpindi : The on-going dengue fever outbreak that has proved to be one of the most severe in nature and effects in the history of the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi is getting closer to its seasonal end.

Data collected by ‘The News’ on Saturday has revealed that in the last 24 hours, only three individuals belonging to Rawalpindi District have tested positive for the infection while the number of patients confirmed positive for the infection per day has dropped down to below seven in the last one week.

The data reveals that in the last one week, as many as 48 patients from the district have tested positive for dengue fever whereas in the previous week, the average number of patients confirmed positive for the infection per day from the district was 18. It is important that this year the dengue fever has claimed as many as 11 lives from the district though the infection has claimed no life in the last five weeks. To date, a total of 6,581 confirmed dengue fever patients have been reported from the district this year.

The number of dengue fever patients being reported from the district is registering a sharp decline. Many experts believe that like the past, the fall in temperature is playing a vital role in controlling the outbreak. The current trend of decline in the number of patients is due to the cold spell that restricts mosquitoes’ activity particularly outside homes and offices.

It is worth mentioning here that in low temperature, mosquitoes including ‘aedes aegypti’, the vector that causes dengue fever become unable to bite because of weak energy in joints that does not let them make a firm grip and mount on the body of a person for sucking blood.

According to health experts, there would only be sporadic cases of the infection after a week or so, however, they say that indoor surveillance, at the time is critical to avoid incidence of dengue fever as temperature inside homes may be suitable for growth and survival of ‘aedes aegypti’, the vector that causes dengue fever.

The number of confirmed dengue fever patients undergoing treatment at the three teaching hospitals in town including Holy Family Hospital, Benazir Bhutto Hospital and Rawalpindi Teaching Hospital was eight on Saturday that remained well over 65 some two weeks back.