The Aftermath of Flood Crises- Diphtheria Outbreak in Sindh
The recent floods in Pakistan have not only resulted in greater than 1290 deaths and 12500 flood-related injuries but also thousands of cases of communicable and non-communicable diseases [1]. One of the worrisome outbreaks is that of diphtheria; which in August-September 2022 resulted in 39 co...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Liaquat National Hospital and Medical College
2023-04-01
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| Series: | Liaquat National Journal of Primary Care |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.lnh.edu.pk/lnjpc/pdf/c045ed4e-99d2-40df-9cf8-07cfb56c2f9e.pdf |
| _version_ | 1811173141819424768 |
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| author | Syed Bilal Hashmi Laraib Malik |
| author_facet | Syed Bilal Hashmi Laraib Malik |
| author_sort | Syed Bilal Hashmi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The recent floods in Pakistan have not only resulted
in greater than 1290 deaths and 12500 flood-related
injuries but also thousands of cases of communicable
and non-communicable diseases [1]. One of the
worrisome outbreaks is that of diphtheria; which in
August-September 2022 resulted in 39 confirmed cases
and 10 deaths in Sindh [2].
Corynebacterium diphtheriae is a bacterium causing
diphtheria infection [3]. This bacterium is transmitted
between humans via droplets, secretions, and direct
contact with cutaneous lesions. The toxin produced
can cause respiratory symptoms leading to airway
obstruction, myocarditis, or nephritis. A judicious
diagnosis is pivotal and treatment should be initiated
immediately. Isolation of toxigenic bacteria confirms the
diagnosis. Treatment includes anti-toxin and antibiotics.
An effective vaccine is available against diphtheria
which is included in our EPI program [4]. The death ratio
among untreated patients ranges from 5% to 20% [5].
The incidence of diphtheria is reduced by the introduction
of vaccines [5, 6]. However, diphtheria is still prevalent in
some low-income countries [6]. Children over 5 years of
age have more chances of acquiring diphtheria due to a
lack of booster doses after primary series coverage [7].
Unfortunately, the full vaccination coverage for children
under the age of two years is 76.1%, which contributes
to high infant and child mortality [8]. The situation has
become graver after the floods, where providing basic
health amenities is a challenge. The flood-affected areas
require proper disease assessment and vaccine drive.
These outbreaks should be inspected, routine childhood
immunization should be done at a quicker pace and
additional booster Diphtheria-Pertussis-Tetanus (DPT)
vaccine should be encompassed in the EPI program. We
would also recommend initiating an outbreak response
immunization campaign in the affected areas to stop this
outbreak. The primary care physicians should counsel
the parents and ensure that children are vaccinated
appropriately to age.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
None. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T17:41:51Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-29989fc860a24d719ae089c01c3418a7 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2707-3521 2708-9134 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T17:41:51Z |
| publishDate | 2023-04-01 |
| publisher | Liaquat National Hospital and Medical College |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Liaquat National Journal of Primary Care |
| spelling | doaj.art-29989fc860a24d719ae089c01c3418a72023-02-03T10:57:13ZengLiaquat National Hospital and Medical CollegeLiaquat National Journal of Primary Care2707-35212708-91342023-04-0151575710.37184/lnjpc.2707-3521.5.5The Aftermath of Flood Crises- Diphtheria Outbreak in SindhSyed Bilal Hashmi0Laraib Malik1Consultant Pathologist, Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, PakistanAbbasi Shaheed Hospital, Tabish Dehlavi Road, Nazimabad, Karachi, PakistanThe recent floods in Pakistan have not only resulted in greater than 1290 deaths and 12500 flood-related injuries but also thousands of cases of communicable and non-communicable diseases [1]. One of the worrisome outbreaks is that of diphtheria; which in August-September 2022 resulted in 39 confirmed cases and 10 deaths in Sindh [2]. Corynebacterium diphtheriae is a bacterium causing diphtheria infection [3]. This bacterium is transmitted between humans via droplets, secretions, and direct contact with cutaneous lesions. The toxin produced can cause respiratory symptoms leading to airway obstruction, myocarditis, or nephritis. A judicious diagnosis is pivotal and treatment should be initiated immediately. Isolation of toxigenic bacteria confirms the diagnosis. Treatment includes anti-toxin and antibiotics. An effective vaccine is available against diphtheria which is included in our EPI program [4]. The death ratio among untreated patients ranges from 5% to 20% [5]. The incidence of diphtheria is reduced by the introduction of vaccines [5, 6]. However, diphtheria is still prevalent in some low-income countries [6]. Children over 5 years of age have more chances of acquiring diphtheria due to a lack of booster doses after primary series coverage [7]. Unfortunately, the full vaccination coverage for children under the age of two years is 76.1%, which contributes to high infant and child mortality [8]. The situation has become graver after the floods, where providing basic health amenities is a challenge. The flood-affected areas require proper disease assessment and vaccine drive. These outbreaks should be inspected, routine childhood immunization should be done at a quicker pace and additional booster Diphtheria-Pertussis-Tetanus (DPT) vaccine should be encompassed in the EPI program. We would also recommend initiating an outbreak response immunization campaign in the affected areas to stop this outbreak. The primary care physicians should counsel the parents and ensure that children are vaccinated appropriately to age. CONFLICT OF INTEREST The authors declare no conflict of interest. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS None.https://journals.lnh.edu.pk/lnjpc/pdf/c045ed4e-99d2-40df-9cf8-07cfb56c2f9e.pdfflood crisesoutbreak in sindh |
| spellingShingle | Syed Bilal Hashmi Laraib Malik The Aftermath of Flood Crises- Diphtheria Outbreak in Sindh Liaquat National Journal of Primary Care flood crises outbreak in sindh |
| title | The Aftermath of Flood Crises- Diphtheria Outbreak in Sindh |
| title_full | The Aftermath of Flood Crises- Diphtheria Outbreak in Sindh |
| title_fullStr | The Aftermath of Flood Crises- Diphtheria Outbreak in Sindh |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Aftermath of Flood Crises- Diphtheria Outbreak in Sindh |
| title_short | The Aftermath of Flood Crises- Diphtheria Outbreak in Sindh |
| title_sort | aftermath of flood crises diphtheria outbreak in sindh |
| topic | flood crises outbreak in sindh |
| url | https://journals.lnh.edu.pk/lnjpc/pdf/c045ed4e-99d2-40df-9cf8-07cfb56c2f9e.pdf |
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