PESHAWAR(National Times)- Officials of the health department have called the outbreak of chikungunya in Nowshera district a local transmission of the virus and stressed the need for immediate household vector control and contact tracing activities in the neighbourhoods of the areas that reported positive cases of the mosquito-borne disease.
Officials in the department told Dawn that after the detection of 14 chikungunya cases in Nowshera and one in Malakand during the last one week, there was an urgent need to strengthen surveillance along with public awareness to prevent mosquito bites to control the spread of the infection.
They said the chikungunya outbreak started in a union council of Kaka Sahib locality in Nowshera district on August 31 represented a credible, localised transmission warranting urgent, coordinated action from the district health authorities.
“This chikungunya positivity rate and clustering pattern indicate a credible localised transmission signal warranting an immediate, coordinated public-health response,” an official told Dawn.
They call for stronger surveillance, public awareness
Officials said the chikungunya cases were reported in Nowshera and Malakand between August 31 and Sept 8.
They said out of a total of 28 suspected cases, including 15 women and 13 men, 15 tested positive for the viral disease.
The officials said that the chikungunya positivity rate remained 53.6pc, with the age of suspected cases ranging from five to 76 years.
They said 10 of the 15 positive cases (67 per cent) aged 30 or below, indicating the outbreak was affecting children and working-age adults instead of being confined to older age groups.
The officials said women totalled 53.6 per cent of those tested for the disease.
They said the positivity rate was slightly higher among men (61.5 per cent) than women.
The officials said a smaller cluster of three people was tested in Malakand, with one, a 12-year-old girl, testing positive for the viral infection.
They said a smaller positive cluster was also identified in the area, warranting monitoring to prevent further spread of chikungunya.
An advisory issued by the health department has outlined protective measures against chikungunya, including prevention of mosquito bites, the use of mosquito repellents on exposed skin, especially during daytime hours when Aedes mosquitoes are most active, and the wearing of long-sleeve shirts and long trousers, particularly for children and outdoor workers in the affected catchment.
It said the people in endemic areas should take rest or sleep under mosquito nets, which should also be used by infants and young children during daytime naps.
It called for the installation of window and door screens and keeping them in good repair to prevent entry to mosquitoes.
The health department also said local health authorities should track treatment and recovery outcomes and re-testing where it was clinically indicated for confirmed chikungunya cases.
