Syed Shemul Parvez :
At least three more people died of dengue across the country on Tuesday as the mosquito-borne disease continues to take its toll on the people.
Besides, at least 1,626 dengue patients were hospitalised in 24 hours till 8am on Wednesday against Tuesday’s 1,572. The number of dengue patients was 1,615 on Monday, 1,706 on Sunday, 1,460 on Saturday, and 1,719 on Friday.
Of the new infections, 711 were recorded in Dhaka alone while 915 in other parts of the country.
Currently, 6,278 dengue patients are currently undergoing treatment at different hospitals and clinics, according to the Health Emergency Operation Centre and Control Room of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).
Since the beginning of this year, 57,995 patients infected with dengue were hospitalised and 51,670 of them were discharged after treatment, it sad.
Khadiza Akhter Nila, 27, wife of Md Monir Hossain of Dayaganj in Gendaria of the capital, succumbed to the mosquito-borne disease at Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) on Tuesday evening, said Bachchu Mia, in-charge of DMCH police outpost.
Nila’s relatives said she was diagnosed with dengue during Eid-ul-Azha vacation and admitted to the DMCH on August 16 as her condition deteriorated where she died while undergoing treatment at the Medicine department.
Another unidentified man who was admitted to Sir Salimullah Medical College and Milford Hospital lost his battle to dengue on Tuesday night, said hospital’s Assistant Director Dr Abdur Rashid.
Besides, Nasima Begum, 35, died of dengue in Gournadi upazila of Barishal on Tuesday night.
The government has so far confirmed the deaths of 47 people although unofficial estimates suggest the death toll is much higher.
There is no specific treatment for dengue or severe dengue, WHO says. But early detection and access to proper medical care lowers fatality rates below 1 percent.
Meanwhile, a joint IAEA-FAO-WHO expert team arrived in the capital on Wednesday on a three-day visit aiming to help Bangladesh tackle dengue outbreak caused by Aedes mosquito.
On the first day of its visit, the team held a meeting with senior officials of the Health Services Division, the Local Government Division, the Agriculture Ministry, the Environment, Forest and Climate Change Ministry, Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission and the representatives of the public agencies concerned. Health Services Division Secretary Md Asadul Islam chaired the meeting.
During the meeting, they discussed mosquito control by applying the Sterile Insect Technique (SIT), said a press release of the Health and Family Welfare Ministry.
The main objective of the team is to assess the feasibility of Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) in controlling Aedes mosquito in Bangladesh.
The sterile insect technique is an environmentally-friendly insect pest control method involving the mass-rearing and sterilisation, using radiation, of a target pest, followed by the systematic area-wide release of the sterile males by air over defined areas, where they mate with wild females resulting in no offspring and a declining pest population.
IAEA has approved the expert mission due to an initiative taken by Bangladesh Embassy and Permanent Mission in Vienna, with the support from the Health Services Division, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, and the Ministry of Science & Technology, after the dengue fever outbreak in the country.
The work of the expert team – consisting of Rafael Argilés Herrero and Danilo de Oliveira Carvalho, Technical Officers of the Insect Pest Control Section at the Joint FAO/IAEA Division of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture, and Rajpal Yadav, Scientist, Vector Ecology and Management, Department of Control of Neglected Tropical Diseases, WHO – is expected to help Bangladesh in successfully tackling the diseases caused by the Aedes mosquito population in the country.
“We are trying to avail the best possible scientific know-how to tackle the Aedes mosquito. We thank IAEA for prompt response to support Bangladesh in this time of need,” said Bangladesh Ambassador & Permanent Representative in Vienna M Abu Zafar, according to a Foreign Ministry press release issued yesterday.
