The Congo virus

As happens each year ahead of Eidul Azha, the threat of the Congo Crimean Haemorrhagic Fever is back. This year, some weeks ahead of Eid, the District Health Authority in Rawalpindi and authorities in other cities have issued warnings that people should wear gloves when visiting animal markets and light-coloured clothes so that a tick can be spotted easily. The Congo Fever is spread by the bite of a tick often carried by all kinds of cattle and sheep, and can cause death in 10 to 40 percent of cases according to the WHO, especially when swift treatment is not offered. The disease has in recent years emerged as a significant threat in Pakistan. This year alone, at least three people in Karachi have died as a result of Congo Fever, including two women and a young man. In 2016, nine died in Quetta and since then deaths have been reported from cities in Punjab, Sindh and in other parts of the country.

People need to be warned. Congo Fever is most likely to affect those who routinely handle cattle or live amongst them. These handlers too need to be educated about the need to guard against ticks. The spraying of cattle and the spaces where they are kept can help guard against the spread of the illness by killing off the disease-bearing tick. Such measures need to begin now, as cattle begin to be brought into urban centres and towns for Eid sales.

While the number of deaths has been increasing over the years, there is still extremely limited awareness about the disease and in smaller towns hospital staff may be ill-equipped to deal with it. Education for medical practitioners is then also necessary as is a campaign to encourage people who believe they may be infected to report symptoms swiftly and visit a doctor. We need to control Congo Fever, a relatively new arrival in our country. Ensuring Congo Fever does not claim lives is therefore important ahead of Eidul Azha, when many people who do not normally do so will be interacting closely with cattle kept at home. The number of deaths so far has already been disturbing. There must be steps taken to prevent any more.