C T Online Desk: The diarrhoea situation has deteriorated in the capital while the number of people infected with the waterborne disease is increasing in different parts of the country.
According to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), the number of diarrhoea patients has increased in different districts of Dhaka, Chattogram and Barishal divisions with the situation in the capital worsening further.
“Diarrhoea is a water-borne disease. Drinking unsafe water is the main reason for the disease. The number of diarrhoea patients usually increases during March and April every year,” Baharul Alam, head of hospitals at the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b), told the Daily Sun on Thursday.
He said negligence in maintaining hygiene, including washing hands properly, and drinking unhygienic juices and other drinks during this hot summer are the major reasons behind the diarrhoea outbreak.
“There’s been a huge pressure of diarrhoea patients at the icddr,b since March 7. I think it’ll take 4-6 more weeks for the numbers to decline,” Baharul said.
Mentioning that the number of diarrhoea patients is still increasing at the icddr,b, he said most of the patients are adults.
The physician advised people to drink safe water and avoid street juice and food to protect them from diarrhoea.
According to the icddr,b, around 20,000 diarrhoea patients were admitted to the hospital in the last 16 days since March 16, and the daily average admissions have soared to over 1,100 since March 17.
A total of 1,331 diarrhoea patients were admitted to the icddr,b on March 30 while 1,317 on March 29, 1,334 on March 28, 1,230 on March 27, 1,245 on March 26, 1,138 on March 25, 1,176 on March 24, 1,233 on March 23, 1,272 on March 22, 1,216 on March 21, 1,157 on March 20, 1,135 on March 19, 1,174 on March 18, 1,141 on March 17 and 1,057 on March 16.
The icddr,b said 915 diarrhoea patients were admitted to the hospital from 12:00am till 5:00pm on Thursday.
According to the DGHS data, 29,681 diarrhoea patients were admitted to the icddr,b in March, 10,344 in February and 15,901 in January.
Baharul said the diarrhoea patients were rushing to the hospital from various parts of Dhaka city and its adjacent districts as well.
Visiting the hospital on Thursday noon, it was seen that the authorities have already pitched two additional tents as they are struggling to accommodate the increasing number of diarrhoea patients with at least one patient being admitted in every two minutes.
Doctors and nurses of the country’s lone cholera hospital are struggling to tackle the situation.
The icddr,b sources said from the end of the first week of the current month, 500 patients were admitted to the icddr,b every day on average, which increased to 600 in the second week.
Ata, 24, a construction worker from Signboard area in Narayanganj, fell sick on Wednesday noon and was admitted to the hospital on Thursday noon.
Sumona, 25, hailing from Kajla in Jatrabari in the capital, fell sick two days ago and was taken to the hospital the same day. Her husband Enamul, a petrol pump worker, told the Daily Sun: “We drink WASA water after boiling. But we’re getting water mired with bad smell for the last few days.”
The DGHS said the number of diarrhoea patients has also increased in some other areas of the country, especially Barishal and Chattogram divisions, over the last few days.
“The diarrhoea cases have seen a rise in Chattogram division over the last few days. Especially, the number of patients has increased in different hospitals of Chandpur district. We’ve already collected stool samples of patients and sent those to the icddr,b for test,” Dr Hasan Shahriar Kabir, director (Chittagong division) of the DGHS, told the Daily Sun.
Dr Md Humayun Shaheen Khan, director (Barishal division) of the DGHS, said the number of diarrhoea patients is a little bit higher than usual at local hospitals for around a week. “However, the situation is under control.”
Dr Md Monzurul Murshid, director (Khulna division) of the DGHS, said the number of diarrhoea patients is still usual in Khulna.
DGHS Director for Sylhet division Dr Himangshu Lal Roy said the number of diarrhoea patients has declined following the rainfall.
The DGHS sources said the diarrhoea situation in Rajshahi, Rangpur and Mymensingh divisions remained normal.
