Karachi gripped by flu as hospitals report surge in cases

KARACHI: Karachi is witnessing a significant surge in seasonal influenza cases, with major hospitals reporting a sharp increase in patients.

Dr Irfan Siddiqui, Administrative Coordinator and In-charge of the Emergency and Resuscitation (ER) Department at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC), said the hospital was receiving more than 80 influenza patients daily.

He said the number of influenza cases at JPMC had doubled, attributing the increase to changing weather conditions, dust and air pollution.

Dr Siddiqui warned that the infection was spreading rapidly within households, with an entire family potentially becoming infected if even one member contracted the virus.

Meanwhile, Civil Hospital Karachi is also reporting a growing number of influenza patients, with hospital officials saying that more than 50 cases are being reported daily.

Dr Faisal Mahmood said influenza cases had been increasing rapidly across Karachi over the past one to two months.

He added that approximately 200 cases had been reported over the past few months, warning that the actual number could be significantly higher because most patients did not undergo diagnostic testing.

Dr Mahmood said the influenza season usually peaks in December and January, but this year the surge had started earlier than usual.

Meanwhile, a shortage of seasonal influenza vaccines has been reported across Pakistan, with both multinational and Chinese-manufactured flu vaccines reportedly unavailable in the market.

Read More: Flu vaccine disappears from Pakistani markets amid supply shortage

According to officials, supplies of influenza vaccines manufactured by multinational pharmaceutical companies are expected to arrive in November or December.

Drug control authorities said the limited stocks of flu vaccines supplied by Chinese manufacturers had also been exhausted.

Amid the shortage, attempts to sell allegedly counterfeit influenza vaccines have also come to light, raising concerns about public access to safe and genuine vaccines.