Mosquitoes become more
resistant to drugs; Dengue and malaria on full boom, especially in Pakistan, and
mainly in Asia and Africa-
Stagnant rainwater gathered in puddles are sure breeding grounds for dengue and
malaria-carrying mosquitoes, more breeding grounds are expected to be created by
more flood water, triggering the birth of more mosquitoes.
Thousands of cases of gastro and dengue fever were reported in various cities of
Pakistan including Rawalpindi, Lahore and Karachi, however, the provincial
government allocated little budget for prevention and control of the said
infections.
More than 374 patients from both private and public hospitals have been
confirmed dengue fever positive in the Punjab including 273 in provincial
metropolis and 101 from other cities during the last seven-and-a-half months
till August 21, according to Communicable Disease Control (CDC) Cell of the
Health Department.
Manager, Provincial Malaria Control Programme, Dr Naheed Jamali said that six
thousand cases of malaria had been reported in the ongoing year, which she
considered normal. President Infection Control Society, Director Dow
Laboratories and Assistant Professor Dow University of Health Sciences, Dr
Rafique Khanani says the chances of malaria and dengue spreading in the rain-hit
areas of Sindh have drastically increased due to the accumulated rainwater in
the flooded areas. Whereas the allocated budget for the Provincial Malaria
Control Programme for the calendar year 2011-12 was yet to be released, Africa,
Asia, and Central and South America are the areas with high numbers of malarial
and dengue infections. To reduce the chance of getting malaria, experts
suggested to people should avoid malaria and dengue-endemic areas of the world,
use mosquito repellents, cover exposed skin, and use mosquito netting covered
areas when sleeping.
Despite decades of efforts to beat mosquitoes with insecticides, indoor
spraying, bed nets and combination drugs, malaria still kills nearly 800,000
people a year, most of them babies and young children in sub-Saharan Africa.
A study from Africa and South America which have suggested resistance to common
insecticides is on the rise, and said this could have serious implications for
malaria control strategies, particularly since there are few alternative
insecticides that are effective, cheap and safe for humans.
By 2010 the proportion of mosquitoes resistant to Delta methrin, the chemical
recommended by the World Health Organization for bed nets, was 37%.
In the last four months of the study the researchers found that the incidence of
malaria attacks returned to high levels. Among older children and adults the
rate was even higher than before the introduction of the nets.
Climate change, which continued to endanger health and food safety were among
major health issues that needs to be given more attention. Experts say that
Pakistan needs to invest a lot on research on most effective measures to protect
health from climate change particularly in vulnerable populations such as women,
children and elderly in the country.
In January 2011, President Paul Biya announced that malaria treatment would be
free for all children under five. And now Cameroonian Prime Minister Philemon
Yang on Saturday 20 August launched an anti-malaria campaign, promising to
distribute nine million free mosquito nets. But in Pakistan no such positive
steps have seen in such unhealthy conditions. Health experts from Pakistan
suggest that the provincial health department particularly in Punjab should
allocate a separate additional budget well in time for prevention and control of
dengue fever in 2011, now when dengue is on full boom, misfortunately.
The 12th International Training Course on Dengue, 8- 19 August, which for the
first time was attended by more than 200 experts from Cuba and another 27
countries, also included the third International Convention on Latin American
Laboratories and Collaborating Centers for Dengue (RELDA), where the structure
and work guidelines of the organization for the next term were discussed.
The 12th International Training Course on Dengue concluded in Havana with the
participation of Cuban and foreign specialists. The creation of a multinational
dengue monitoring and control program is one of the main achievements of the
12th International Training Course on Dengue.
In addition, the participants paid tribute to Professor Gustavo Kouri —who
passed away recently— for his contribution to the struggle against dengue. Kouri
was an insigne scientist, researcher and director, who had taken part in the
eleventh previous courses.