A nurse prepares a vaccine at a vaccination center in Sarcelles, near Paris, on January 10, 2021. – AFP Health officials said all diphtheria cases were referred to SIDH, where more than 10 children were being treated. Experts say the only treatment for diphtheria is complete vaccination.
More than 100 children have died from diphtheria in Karachi this year due to unavailability of diphtheria antitoxin (DAT), despite it being preventable through vaccination, Sindh health department officials said on Saturday. did.
The number of diphtheria cases and child deaths from the disease is rapidly increasing in this metropolis.
All the diphtheria cases were referred to Sindh Infectious Diseases Hospital (SIDH).
Last year, SIDH received 140 cases, of which 52 could not be transported, according to state health officials. Meanwhile, more than 10 children are currently receiving treatment at the hospital, they added.
However, after the report was released, the Sindh Health Department claimed that only 28 children would have lost their lives in 2024 instead of 100.
“This year, 166 diphtheria cases were reported in Sindh, of which 28 people died,” it said.
Meanwhile, infectious disease experts said the antitoxin used for the disease was not available across Sindh, including Karachi. They said anti-venom worth Rs 250,000 was used to treat one child.
Experts said, “The only treatment for diphtheria is complete vaccination and treatment with antitoxin.”
Diphtheria is a serious infection caused by a strain of bacteria called Corynebacterium diphtheriae that produces a toxin. It can lead to breathing and heart rhythm problems and even death. Children in Pakistan are being vaccinated with a combination of five vaccines that protect against five major diseases: diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, hepatitis B and Haemophilus influenzae type b (DTP-hepB-Hib), experts say. the family added.
Dr. Muhammad Arif Khan, Director of the Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said last year that diphtheria is a life-threatening disease and that timely vaccination can prevent the deadly disease and its spread in the community. Said to be the only way.
“It primarily affects the throat and upper respiratory tract, but can also cause systemic complications. Diphtheria is known for forming a grayish-white film in the throat, making it difficult to breathe and swallow. may cause it.”
The disease, which has been eradicated in most countries around the world, remains in Pakistan, an unenviable situation for the country and its health authorities. Bearing in mind the fact that diphtheria is a deadly bacterial infection, no compromises should be made in vaccinating all children with diphtheria.
—Additional opinion by Shawwala Aslam
