ISLAMABAD: Medical practitioners Thursday advised public to take special preventive measures and ensure cleanliness in and around their houses to avoid dengue virus during the summer season.
Talking to a private news channel, An infectious disease expert Dr Zaib Waqar stressed on creating awareness among public on how to avoid a possible outbreak of the infection that may hit population in comming summer season.
He said the most important thing is to make public aware of the risk factors and preventive measures to be taken to avoid outbreak.
The health departments in the country should start social mobilization campaigns and contact individuals to take matter seriously to ensure destroying of possible breeding sites of mosquitoes and adult mosquitoes inside and around their houses, he urged.
The pediatrician believe that the number of dengue cases could rise even further and have also asked civic bodies to take adequate preventive measures to avoid mosquito conditions near offices and homes.
People should take precautionary measures like change water in their air coolers regularly. The overhead water tanks should also be cleaned form time to time, he added.
He explained, dengue fever is a mosquito-borne disease that occurs in tropical and subtropical areas of the world. Mild dengue fever causes a high fever, rash, and muscle and joint pain, adding, a severe form of dengue fever, also called dengue hemorrhagic fever, can cause severe bleeding, a sudden drop in blood pressure (shock) and death.
He added, the mosquitoes that carry the dengue viruses are most active from dawn to dusk, but they can also bite at night.
He suggested citizens should use insect repellent, wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants, and control mosquitoes inside and outside your home.
Due to lack of knowledge about how to effectively take preventive steps or what to do when infected despite the fact that extensive awareness campaigns have been held there over the past few years.
A campaign for educating people about dengue fever was also under way through print and electronic media.
Read Top Stories
He advised people should wear long-sleeve clothes, use insect repellents and mosquito nets, avoid going out at night and just before dawn and properly cover water pots.
According to him citizens should properly dispose of solid waste and stop water storage practices at their residences to prevent any access to egg-laying female mosquitoes.
Dr said mosquitoes breed primarily in containers like earthenware jars, metal drums and concrete cisterns used for domestic water storage, as well as discarded plastic food containers, used automobile tyres and other items that collect rain water.
Another specialist Dr Basit Ali said that dengue is a mosquito-borne infection, which in recent years has become a major public health concern.
He said dengue fever is a severe, flu-like illness that affects infants, young children and adults.
Basit Ali said the rapid growth of urban population is bringing ever greater numbers of people into contact with this vector, especially in areas that are favorable for mosquito breeding i.e. in places where household water storage is common and where solid waste disposal services are inadequate.
He said that dengue viruses are transmitted to humans through the bites of infective female aedes mosquitoes. He added mosquitoes generally acquire the virus while feeding on the blood of an infected person.
APP
