Dengue fever Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne tropical disease caused by the dengue virus. Symptoms typically begin three to fourteen days after infection. These may include a high fever, headache, vomiting, muscle and joint pains, and a characterist ...

is an important

infectious disease An infection is the invasion of tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmissible disease or communicable dise ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

with increasingly frequent

epidemics An epidemic (from Greek ἐπί ''epi'' "upon or above" and δῆμος ''demos'' "people") is the rapid spread of disease to a large number of patients among a given population within an area in a short period of time. Epidemics of infectious d ...

. Despite the efforts of the

Government of Pakistan The Government of Pakistan ( ur, , translit=hakúmat-e pákistán) abbreviated as GoP, is a federal government established by the Constitution of Pakistan as a constituted governing authority of the Administrative units of Pakistan, four provin ...

, especially in

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

, the high cost of prevention has limited the ability of Pakistan to control epidemics. In Pakistan, in the summer of 2011, more than 300 people died of Dengue fever. The prevalence of the disease was over 14,000. The outbreaks occurred mostly in the

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...

area,

Punjab, Pakistan Punjab (; , ) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in central-eastern region of the country, Punjab is the second-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the largest province by population. It shares land borders with the ...

2011 epidemic

Morbidity and mortality

In November 2010, more than 21,204 people were diagnosed with dengue fever. Those infected were mainly from

. Patients were admitted to dedicated wards in government hospitals. The severity of the epidemic was greatest in

. The secretary of the Punjab Mineral Development Corporation, Ataullah Siddiqui and Ghiasuddin, a member of the Punjab Public Service Commission died as a result of the dengue fever. On 30 September 2011, the Punjab MPA

Mumtaz Jajja Chaudhry Mumtaz Ahmed Jajja (15 June 1948 – 30 September 2011) was a Pakistani politician affiliated with the Pakistan Muslim League (N) political party who served as a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan (MNA) from 1985 to 1988 and as ...

also died of dengue fever. Eight

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...

engineers were taken ill.

Government response

A special tribunal for Dengue fever was empanelled. The chairman of the Dengue Emergency Response Committee was

Khawaja Saad Rafique Khawaja Saad Rafique (; born 4 November 1962) is a Pakistani politician who has been a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan since October 2018 and the current federal minister for Railways. A leader of the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawa ...

. The

and the provincial Government of Punjab (Pakistan) took preventive measures to reduce the spread of the disease. A hotline called the "Punjab Health Line Project For Dengue" was opened to facilitate knowledge of the signs and symptoms of dengue fever, provide help people affected and identify areas where the epidemic may have spread. Teams of workers fumigated areas, particularly educational institutions and rural areas where the Aedes mosquito was present. In early September 2011, the Government of Punjab (Pakistan) ordered the schools, colleges and universities in

to close for 10 days for intensive fogging to eliminate the vector mosquitoes. Article 144 was implemented in

city for the prevention of dengue fever. After an appeal by the Government of Punjab (Pakistan), private hospitals agreed to provide free treatment to dengue patients. During dengue fever epidemics, the Pakistan army created camps in

city. The

Pakistan Air Force , "Be it deserts or seas; all lie under our wings" (traditional) , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = ...

has also assisted the government. The Punjab government worked to increase public awareness. Local authorities in

Hyderabad Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...

held a seminar. Other programs were held in educational facilities. A 24-hour government sponsored online service, the "Punjab Health Line Project For Dengue" provided information about the disease and its prevention.

International response

In 2011, the

Government of Sri Lanka The Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) ( si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා රජය, Śrī Lankā Rajaya; ta, இலங்கை அரசாங்கம்) is a parliamentary system determined by the Sri Lankan Constitution. It administers the is ...

gave medicines and staff to Punjab. A group of 12 doctors from

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

came to

to assist. The

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

n government dispatched a medical team of twenty to assist the Pakistani authorities. The

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of h ...

provided technical guidance along with support for provincial and territorial dengue monitoring and coordination committees."Pakistan hit by Dengue fever outbreak."
UNmultimedia.org September 2011.

References

{{Epidemics Disease outbreaks in Pakistan Dengue Outbreak In Pakistan, 2011 2011 disease outbreaks

2011 epidemic

Morbidity and mortality

Government response

International response

See also

References