Lahore [Pakistan], October 12 : Pakistan's Punjab Health Department has reported a surge in dengue cases, with 149 new cases emerging across the province in the last 24 hours, according to a report by ARY News.
According to the Punjab Health Department's latest figures, Rawalpindi continues to bear the brunt of the dengue outbreak with 134 cases reported. Bahawalpur and Lahore have also been affected, with three and two cases respectively. Furthermore, Sheikhupura, Jhelum, Faisalabad, Attock, Kasur, Mianwali, Khanewal, Nankana Sahib, and Narowal reported one case each.
During the last week, Punjab reported 997 new cases, bringing the total number of dengue cases to 3,285 for 2024.
The health department assured that all necessary arrangements to counter the outbreak are in place, with adequate stocks of medicine available in public hospitals across the province, ARY News reported.
Earlier on October 9, Rawalpindi declared a district-wide emergency in response to a significant surge in dengue cases. The Deputy Commissioner announced urgent measures to address the outbreak, including the establishment of emergency dengue counters across the district.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) expressed serious concerns about the escalating global prevalence of dengue and other mosquito-borne diseases. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has called for an immediate and coordinated global response to tackle this growing public health crisis.
He emphasised the alarming trend of dengue cases nearly doubling each year since 2021. In the first eight months of 2024 alone, there have been over 12.3 million reported cases worldwide, resulting in more than 7,900 deaths - nearly double the total cases reported for the entire year of 2023, reported ARY News.
Dengue fever can manifest with symptoms ranging from high fever to severe body aches, with a significant proportion of cases being asymptomatic, complicating efforts in disease tracking and management.
The WHO estimates an annual global incidence of between 100 million and 400 million infections, highlighting the immense health burden posed by this mosquito-borne illness.