Viral diseases spread fast in city
Tuesday March 08 2005 08:49:35 AM BDT
NURUL ISLAM HASIB
Viral and waterborne diseases, especially typhoid and hepatitis, are
spreading alarmingly across the country affecting mainly children and
teenagers, with the summer round the corner, experts and hospital sources
said.
According to city clinics, the number of persons affected by viral diseases,
especially typhoid, has increased in the last one month, and the number is
greater than that in the past few years.
However, they failed to provide accurate figures as persons affected by
typhoid and hepatitis mostly go to private medical practitioners. And they
do not turn to the clinics unless their condition deteriorates, the clinics
observed.
According to Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) records, about 30 per
cent of the patients?who come with fever suffer from typhoid.
Experts blame the spread of viral diseases in the city on poor environmental
state, caused particularly by air pollution, fluctuating temperature,
overcrowding and lack of hygiene awareness among the people.
The spate of flu-attack came as the mercury rose higher at the outset of
spring and scarcity of pure drinking water. Children and newborns are
particularly vulnerable to the disease having symptoms like high fever,
running nose and flushing face.
"About 30 per cent of my fever patients suffer from typhoid, while the rest
are affected by other viral fevers," Professor of Medicine FM Siddiqui at
DMCH said.
Prof M Abid Hossain Mollah, head of the department of paediatrics at DMCH
said that typhoid poses great risks to children, as the disease attacks them
after continuous high fever. "Drugs necessary for typhoid treatment are
expensive, so the insolvent section of the people can't afford good
treatment," Prof Abid said while talking to The Independent.
He said, "viral infections are common in pre-winter autumn, but for unknown
reasons city residents are being attacked by viral diseases throughout the
year," he added.
"The diseases which people are suffering from now are purely food and
waterborne," Prof Siddiqui said, adding, "contaminated water, rotten and
ill- prepared foods are the main sources of the germs," he added.
The experts said, "people are also not aware of the disease? transmission.
The affected people are going out for work and children are going to school
transmitting the disease to others. Viral fevers usually spread through
sneezing, coughing and common use of household items."
Although flu remits within three to four days, doctors have advised patients
to be cautious about the lingering of the fever saying that sometimes it
might continue for six to seven days.
They advised, for any kind of febrile illness, only supportive care with
fluid and nutrition is needed, but patients should be investigated and
monitored properly.
"In summer, people drink excessive amount of water due to dehydration after
sweating. If the water is contaminated, a large number of organisms enter
the stomach and if the number exceeds the body's capacity to kill them,
diseases break out," they added.
Prof Siddiqi said, patients who contract respiratory diseases might take a
course of antibiotic medication prescribed by a physician. Otherwise, no
medicine other than paracetamol is necessary.
Medical experts also blamed wrong diagnosis, misuse of antibiotics and
growing antibiotic resistance to the virus for the increased spate of viral
diseases in the city.
The Independent
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发表于 2005-3-10 09:28
