Dengue deadlier for kids

In a grim trend over the last few days, the number of child dengue patients has shot up in hospitals across the capital.

Bangladesh Shishu Hospital and Institute, the government hospital designated for children, yesterday introduced a separate dengue cell to cope with the pressure of patients.

Abdul Hakim, public relations officer of the hospital, said that till yesterday afternoon it was treating 45 dengue patients – the highest number so far this year.

Mentioning that the hospital currently has 681 beds, he added that they are being unable to accommodate many patients due to a shortage of facilities.

Dr Shatavisa Dhar, medical officer at Bangladesh Shishu Hospital, said they  have turned 50-bed medical ward-2, where the 45 dengue patients are now being treated, into a separate "dengue cell".

"We have shifted other patients of the ward to other places."

He added that due to a lack of accommodation, they are only admitting dengue patients who are in critical condition, though non-critical patients are also seeking admission there.

"A single dengue patient needs 10 to 15 days to be cured and so, we can only admit a limited number of patients per day," he said.

With the new deaths, the total number of fatalities rose to 76 this year, while the total number of cases rose to 13,843. Of those, 4,179 are from outside the capital.

According to a DGHS analysis of the first 50 deaths, 62 percent were female and 38 were male. The age group that saw the highest -- 60.80 percent -- number of deaths was between 19 and 50 years. Of the deaths, 4.30 percent  were of children aged between 0 and five and 6.50 percent were of those aged six to 11 years, while nine percent were of those aged over 50.

So far, 176 patients were admitted to Shishu Hospital, where one of the 76 deaths occurred.

HM Nazmul Ahsan, associate professor of Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College and Hospital, said the dengue symptoms are slightly different in children compared to adults.

"While for older people, the symptoms begin with sudden fever along with body and eye pain, children first experience nausea and/or coughing."

A child (newborn to 12) may cry excessively, have fever with nausea and cough and may show disinterest in being breastfed – if such symptoms show up, they may be suspected of suffering from dengue, he said.

Apart from symptoms, dengue also gives less time for children to be cured when at the critical stage.

"It takes 48 hours for the situation to become critical for adults, while children only have 24 hours, which is why we suggest hospitalisation as quickly as possible."

Children are also more prone to developing shock syndrome, which is risky for any dengue patient, he added.

Three-year-old Alvia Jahan Ananda was admitted to Shishu Hospital five days ago after her platelet count came down to 80,000.

A normal platelet count ranges between 150,000–450,000, which is generally accepted for healthy neonates, infants, children, and adolescents.

Mohammad Sharif, father of 3-year-old patient Jahan and a resident of Adabar, said his daughter's platelet count had come down to 56,000 after admission but improved slightly yesterday morning and rose to 60,000.  Mosharraf Hossain, father of 8-year-old Mohammad Habib, said his son was admitted to Dr MR Khan Shishu Hospital & Institute of Child Health in Mirpur on July 4. "When he was admitted, he was in a critical condition but he has now gotten better." 

A nurse of the 250-bed hospital, seeking anonymity, said the number of patients has been increasing over the last few days and they are currently treating over 30 dengue patients.

Meanwhile, the Dhaka South City Corporation yesterday conducted anti-mosquito drives in 10 different areas, including Dhanmondi, Bangshal, Tikatuli and Demra and fined 16 building owners Tk 37.3 lakh for having mosquito breeding grounds in their establishments.

They are also conducting special combing operations to clean spaces and destroy mosquito breeding sources in 94 educational institutes.