Daily Times

The recent full-scale outbreak of Chikungunya Arbo virus infection in Pakistan suggests that the country has become a haven for the virus. According to the findings of an international study, Sindh is most susceptible province to the virus.

In the latest edition of ‘Infection, Disease and Health,’ an international science journal, the research purports that the constant spread of Chikungunya represents a serious new challenge to the nation’s public health, both in the short term and the long term.

The study states that the outbreak of the virus will be a great blow to the country’s economy as it will adversely affect worker output. Pakistan’s struggling healthcare is not equipped to deal with a large scale outbreak of the virus.

In a retrospective study of successive epidemics that started in 2016-17 to mid-2018, thousands of clinical cases were reported, which had led to a significant number of fatalities in various cities across the country.

The study recommends quickly curbing the chikungunya-related febrile illness in Pakistan by improving consolidated vector controlled porgrammes. Accurate infection diagnosis, dedicated disease surveillance and well-managed border enforcement measures should be a public health priority.

Published in Daily Times, August 22^nd 2018.