Dengue has started attaining dangerous proportions in the Punjab as 16 people died due to the virus while 5,133 fell sick.
Of the cases reported in Punjab, a majority of 74 percent have been reported from the city of Lahore alone, notes the data of Punjab’s primary and secondary healthcare department.
In the last 24 hours, 231 dengue patients were recorded in the province, of which 146 were from Lahore, 39 from Rawalpindi, six from Sheikhupura, five from Nankana and Sargodha, amongst others.
Secretary of the primary and healthcare department Imran Sikander has advised citizens to avoid letting water accumulate in residential areas. To date, across the province, health officials have inspected 421,151 indoor places to eradicate the virus, he added.
There has been a sharp surge in the number of those who have fallen sick by the mosquito-borne virus in comparison to last year, especially after the monsoon season in the province.
While the first confirmed outbreak of dengue fever was recorded in Pakistan in 1994, since 2010 Pakistan has been experiencing an epidemic of dengue fever, highlighted by the World Health Organisation.
Once bitten by the Aedes Aegypti mosquito, an infected person will experience flu-like symptoms, including high grade fever, maculopapular rash, headache, severe pain behind the eyes and also pain in joints and muscles.
