First suspected Ebola case emerges in Pakistan
FAISALABAD: A man in Chiniot was rushed to a local hospital in critical condition and has been kept under isolation, with doctors fearing he may have contracted the deadly Ebola virus.
FAISALABAD: A man in Chiniot was rushed to a local hospital in critical condition and has been kept under isolation, with doctors fearing he may have contracted the deadly Ebola virus.
Zulfiqar Ahmad, 40, who resides in Chiniot, returned to Pakistan on
November 16 after working for the Togolese Republic in West Africa.
Ahmad faced multiple health-related problems and was admitted to the DHQ Hospital in Chiniot and later shifted to the Allied Hospital by his relatives.
After conducting initial diagnostic tests, doctors said that he may have contracted the Ebola virus.
“He is a chronic patient of various diseases, and was previously admitted in a hospital in Togo for more than 20 days,” Medical Superintendent (MS) Allied Hospital Dr Rashid Maqbool told The Express Tribune.
He also stated that Ahmad has a serious liver issue and has been vomiting blood.
“He is in a critical condition and is being provided with maximum facilities available at the hospital. His blood and other samples have been taken which have been sent to the National Health Laboratory in Islamabad to ascertain the possibility of the Ebola virus attack,” Dr Maqbool said.
Further, the doctor said that a special team has been constituted to provide Ahmad exclusive treatment. He added that on the arrival of the analysis report, the possibility of the virus could be ruled out and decided accordingly.
Last month, the Sindh Assembly adopted a resolution recommending the Sindh government to take precautionary measures against the Ebola virus by establishing isolation wards to quarantine Ebola patients, have Ebola screening desks and to approach the federal government to setup such desks at airports and railway stations.
As of October, the Ebola death rate has gone up to 70 per cent according to the World Health Organisation.
“What we’re finding is 70% mortality,” said Bruce Aylward, assistant director-general of the WHO.
Ahmad faced multiple health-related problems and was admitted to the DHQ Hospital in Chiniot and later shifted to the Allied Hospital by his relatives.
After conducting initial diagnostic tests, doctors said that he may have contracted the Ebola virus.
“He is a chronic patient of various diseases, and was previously admitted in a hospital in Togo for more than 20 days,” Medical Superintendent (MS) Allied Hospital Dr Rashid Maqbool told The Express Tribune.
He also stated that Ahmad has a serious liver issue and has been vomiting blood.
“He is in a critical condition and is being provided with maximum facilities available at the hospital. His blood and other samples have been taken which have been sent to the National Health Laboratory in Islamabad to ascertain the possibility of the Ebola virus attack,” Dr Maqbool said.
Further, the doctor said that a special team has been constituted to provide Ahmad exclusive treatment. He added that on the arrival of the analysis report, the possibility of the virus could be ruled out and decided accordingly.
Last month, the Sindh Assembly adopted a resolution recommending the Sindh government to take precautionary measures against the Ebola virus by establishing isolation wards to quarantine Ebola patients, have Ebola screening desks and to approach the federal government to setup such desks at airports and railway stations.
As of October, the Ebola death rate has gone up to 70 per cent according to the World Health Organisation.
“What we’re finding is 70% mortality,” said Bruce Aylward, assistant director-general of the WHO.
This page was last modified on November 24, 2014.
