Punjab Caretaker Minister for Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education Dr. Javed Akram has said that strict surveillance is inevitable to curb breeding of dengue mosquito in the monsoon season.
Addressing as the chief guest at the international seminar/ webinar, organised by the Institute of Public Health (IPH) here on Saturday, he said complete eradication of dengue was not possible, but the virus could be controlled by ensuring effective anti-dengue measures/ arrangements and hard work. The health minister said that as a physician, he knew that no patient should die because of dengue as dengue was a completely treatable disease. But people, who already had various diseases like diabetes, heart issues, liver or suffering from kidney diseases, were in danger in case of dengue infection. He said that case management was an art for quick recovery of dengue patients. “If fluid management is not maintained in case of dengue, applying more drips can endanger patient’s life,” he said. Dr Javed Akram said that the chemicals and drugs used in fogging and spraying for dengue control were harmful to environment and also create resistance in dengue mosquito.
Dean Institute of Public Health Professor Dr. Zarfishan Tahir said that in spite of all efforts, according to the data, the total number of dengue cases and deaths had increased in different countries of the world last year. She said for prevention of dengue and provision of good clinical care to patients, affected by the virus, coordinated efforts were required instead of taking individual measures. “Effective steps should be taken by utilising each other’s experiences and research,” she added. She said that in order to deal with the challenge of dengue, the IPH was making practical efforts to control dengue in cooperation with domestic and foreign medical experts, environmental health experts, and vector-borne disease control experts.
Dengue Experts Advisory Group (DEAG) Chairman Professor Tanveer-ul-Isalam and Vice Chairman Professor Arif Nadeem informed the participating doctors about the DEAG guidelines on dengue case management, disease diagnosis and treatment and emphasised that during the treatment of dengue patients, the DEAG guidelines should be strictly followed. Director CDC Dr Yadullh Ali also addressed the seminar.
At the international webinar, Chulalongkorn University Bangkok, Thailand, Dr.Terapong expressed his views on the challenges being faced in treatment of adult dengue patients. Similarly, Professor Ida Safitri Laksono of the University of Gadjah Mada, Indonesia, spoke on various aspects of the treatment of dengue-affected children of the Pediatric Group and Provided awareness. Dr. Jeffrey Bloomquist, professor of entomology at the University of Florida, USA, informed about the use of different essential oils to prevent dengue mosquitoes.
From the Center for Molecular Biology Indonesia, Dr. Tedjo Sasmono, from Parasite Disease Control Association Indonesia. Dr. Rita, from the Philippines, Dr. Lulu Bravo also participated in the discussion about dengue control. National Environmental Health Institute Singapore Group Director Dr. Lee Ching updated the seminar participants on dengue surveillance and control. Besides the local and foreign medical experts, doctors, pathologists, entomologists and health professionals participated in the seminar.
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