Latest news with #SindhHealthDepartment
Express Tribune
12 hours ago
- Health
- Express Tribune
Second Congo virus death reported in Malir
Sindh has reported its second casualty from the Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) Known as Congo virus in 2025, after a fisherman from Ibrahim Hyderi died on June 19. A confirmed case of Congo virus was reported in Malir district after 25-year-old fisherman from Ibrahim Hyderi, identified as Muhammad Zubair was admitted to Jinnah Hospital on June 16 with severe symptoms, including high fever, muscle pain, abdominal pain, cough, diarrhea, and bleeding. Upon suspicion of Congo virus infection and due to limited facilities, he was referred to the Sindh Infectious Diseases Hospital & Research Centre (SIDH & RC), where he passed away on June 19. Following the death, the Sindh Health Department has mobilised an Active Search and Response Team to the affected locality. Health officials have gathered information from the family and identified all individuals who were in contact with the patient. As of now, no other person has been reported with the virus. However, residents and family members have been counseled on preventive measures and early symptom detection.
Express Tribune
a day ago
- Health
- Express Tribune
Congo virus claims three lives in Pakistan
Listen to article Pakistan has recorded three deaths from Congo virus on Thursday, with two fatalities reported in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) and one in Karachi, Express News reported. The latest victim in Sindh was a 25-year-old fisherman from Ibrahim Hyderi, while the K-P toll includes patients from Karak and North Waziristan. According to health officials, Muhammad Zubair, a resident of Malir district, first exhibited symptoms including high fever, muscle pain, abdominal discomfort, coughing, diarrhea, bleeding, and loss of consciousness on June 16. He was admitted to Jinnah Hospital, where doctors suspected Congo virus infection. Due to the lack of specialized treatment facilities, he was transferred to the Sindh Infectious Diseases Hospital, where he died at 7 am on June 19. Read More: Sindh reports first Congo virus death of 2025 The Sindh Health Department has promptly dispatched an active search and response team to the affected area. Contact tracing efforts have been carried out, with all individuals who had close contact with the deceased identified and monitored. So far, no other cases have been reported. Local residents and the victim's family have been advised to follow strict precautionary measures to prevent further spread. This death follows the province's first reported fatality from the virus earlier this year, when a 42-year-old man from Malir district was admitted to Indus Hospital in Korangi on June 16 and died the next day. In K-P, two Congo virus patients from Karak and North Waziristan districts died at Hayatabad Medical Complex. These fatalities have raised the provincial death toll to three. Also Read: Two Congo virus patient hospitalised at Peshawar's Hayatabad Medical Complex Meanwhile, three additional patients infected with the virus are currently receiving treatment in isolation wards at the hospital. Health Advisor Ehtesham Ali said contact tracing and sanitization operations have been initiated at the homes of the deceased and the infected. He added that an advisory regarding Congo virus had been circulated to all hospitals across Pakistan prior to Eidul Azha, as the increased movement and slaughter of sacrificial animals heighten the risk of transmission. Congo virus is a severe viral disease transmitted primarily through tick bites or contact with the blood and tissues of infected animals, particularly during and immediately after slaughter. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports a case fatality rate of 10-40 per cent, with no vaccine currently available. In April, the National Institute of Health (NIH) issued an advisory urging preventive measures ahead of Eidul Azha, when the movement of sacrificial animals increases.
Arab News
2 days ago
- Health
- Arab News
Pakistan reports first Congo virus death of 2025 in Karachi
KARACHI: A 42-year-old man lost his life after contracting the Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF), marking the first confirmed fatality from the virus in Pakistan's southern Sindh province this year, the health department said on Wednesday. The fatality rate for the Congo virus ranges from 10 percent to 40 percent, depending on the quality of health care, timeliness of treatment and the patient's overall health, according to the World Health Organization. The virus, which is endemic in parts of Africa, Europe and Asia, is primarily transmitted through tick bites or contact with the blood or tissues of infected animals. 'First case of Congo virus [has been] reported in Sindh,' the Sindh Health Department said in a statement on Wednesday. '42-year-old male was a resident of District Malir,' it continued. 'The test report came out positive on June 16 and the patient passed away on June 17.' Pakistan's southwestern Balochistan province reported 23 Congo virus cases in 2024, with five deaths since January last year. Local medical practitioners said most cases were diagnosed during the summer, when the likelihood of the virus spreading increases, particularly around the Eid Al-Adha festival. The Islamic holiday, marked by the mass slaughter of animals, typically leads to greater human-animal interaction and exposure to infected livestock. Pakistan witnessed its first case of Congo virus in 1976 and remained a major victim for years, according to the National Library of Medicine. The country faces major challenges in combating Congo virus every year due to its specific geographical position and a majority of the population being involved with animal husbandry, it added. There is no approved vaccine for its prevention. The European Medicines Agency in May 2024 approved a Phase I clinical trial in Sweden for a DNA-based vaccine candidate, N-pVAX1, targeting the Congo virus. Separately, the University of Oxford in August 2023 launched a Phase I trial of its ChAdOx2 CCHF vaccine, based on the Oxford/AstraZeneca Covid-19 platform, to assess safety and immune response.
Express Tribune
30-05-2025
- Health
- Express Tribune
Cancer patients to get instant biopsy reports
For the first time in Pakistan, immediate biopsy reports of suspected cancer patients will be possible in a government hospital. Under the development projects for the upcoming fiscal year, the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) will introduce a confocal instant digital pathology system, enabling real-time detection of tumor nature and spread during the surgery. Suspected cancer patients will now receive immediate biopsy reports even at government hospitals. The JPMC is set to become Pakistan's first public hospital to implement the confocal instant digital pathology system, allowing surgeons to determine tumor type and extent in real-time during surgeries. Professor Shahid Rasool, Executive Director of Jinnah Hospital Karachi, stated that the technology was previously available in private hospitals only. However, it will now be installed at Jinnah Hospital with the support of Sindh Health Department under the Sindh government's Annual Development Programme. He said that the technology processes samples and creates slides during surgery, allowing immediate determination whether a tumor is present and, if so, how far it has spread. Patients will no longer have to wait 14 to 15 days for biopsy results. Two advanced units will be purchased at a cost of Rs366 million. One unit will be installed in the surgical complex, benefiting general surgery, orthopaedics, thoracic, and ENT departments, while the second unit will be set up in the gynaecology ward. The aim of the project is not only to increase the speed and accuracy of biopsies but also to reduce the time patients remain under anaesthesia. Current methods, such as frozen section and core biopsies, take longer to produce reports, which can endanger patients' lives. The project also includes training for medical staff and improving technical expertise alongside the procurement of modern machines. Hospital officials said this system will be particularly beneficial for poor and middle-class patients who cannot afford expensive treatments at private hospitals.
Express Tribune
23-05-2025
- Health
- Express Tribune
Measles claims territory in District East
The future of a nation relies heavily on the health and well-being of its children, who must be protected from childhood diseases through rigorous vaccination drives. Unfortunately, in Sindh, where routine immunization remains a challenge, diseases like measles continue to nip the buds of the country. According to the Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI) of the Sindh Health Department, over 5,000 children have been brought with symptoms of measles across hospitals in Sindh, where 31 children have died between January and April 2025. Furthermore, across seven districts of Karachi, 2,242 children were brought to different hospitals with symptoms of measles, the presence of which was confirmed through a laboratory test in 948 children. While speaking of the recent epidemic, Dr Raj Kumar, Project Director of the EPI at the Ministry of Health, confirmed that the outbreak was concentrated in District East, where out of 407 suspected cases, 247 children were confirmed to have measles. "Conversely, in the Central district, 476 children were brought with symptoms of measles, out of which 100 children were confirmed carriers. Five deaths occurred in Karachi, all of which were reported from District East," claimed Dr Kumar, while speaking of the area where no vaccination drive against measles has been conducted this year. One such grieving parent was Amer Ali, father of 4-year-old Hasnain, who succumbed to measles. "My son was under treatment at a private hospital since the past 15 days. When his condition worsened, he was brought to the NICHD hospital, where he passed away. He had developed pneumonia along with measles, which caused him severe respiratory distress. Although we had administered both doses of the measles vaccine to our son, we still could not save his life," cried Ali. Similarly, parents of another child brought to the emergency ward at Lyari Hospital revealed that their son had been experiencing fever and a rash on his body for several days. "When the child was brought to the emergency ward, the doctor informed that he had contracted measles. Our boy received medical treatment at the emergency ward, and luckily his condition has improved," said the parents. According to Dr Waseem Jamalvi, President of the Pakistan Paediatric Association Sindh, even today many children in the province remain unvaccinated against measles. "If routine vaccination is ensured, the incidence of measles can be reduced. Parents are not getting their children vaccinated against measles. While some get the initial vaccinations, many miss out on the measles vaccine. The Health Department has a sufficient supply of the measles vaccine and has made it available at every EPI centre. Children who are not vaccinated against measles are more likely to contract the disease. Therefore, all parents are urged to get their children vaccinated against measles and complete the full course of protective vaccinations against 12 diseases," implored Dr Jamalvi. Likewise, Dr Ikram Sultan, a health expert also attributed the rapid spread of measles to the low vaccination rate. "Measles is highly contagious, and despite vaccination, the number of children affected by measles is increasing. However, not vaccinating children against measles is a major reason behind the spread of this epidemic. Some affected children are those who were vaccinated, but due to weak immunity, they fell ill. Babies who are not breastfed or are suffering from nutritional deficiencies have weakened immunity and are at risk of acquiring measles. In Pakistan, children are administered measles vaccine at 9 and 15 months of age. If a child receives both doses of the vaccine, they can be effectively protected against measles," said Dr Sultan. "The Health Department of Sindh will launch a special campaign in October, in which 8,226,945 children will be administered the measles vaccine. Under the EPI program, children are given two doses of the MMR vaccine to protect against measles, mumps, and rubella," announced Dr Kumar.
