Patient, doctor die of Congo fever in Jawzjan

SHIBERGHAN (Pajhwok): Two persons, including a doctor, have died of Congo fever and five other health workers contracted the disease in northern Jawzjan province, an official said on Thursday.

The health condition of the infected health workers is satisfactory.

Qari Zabihullah Hussaini, the Public Health Department director, told Pajhwok Afghan News a Congo fever patient, a butcher, visited the provincial hospital and the virus was transmitted to a doctor and four other staff of the hospital.

The doctor and the butcher from Khumab district died of Congo fever, a viral disease that is transmitted by ticks, Hussaini said.

The Public Health Department has taken extreme measures to overcome the outbreak of the disease and the infected patients are quarantined, Qari added.

“Currently the health condition of the patients is satisfactory and they have recovered”, he said.

He called cooperation of some international organizations with the health sector as effective in fighting the Congo disease and said the World Health Organization (WHO) had provided the Public Health Department of Jawzjan with 90 kits for prevention of Congo disease.

“This disease is under control now and no positive cases have been registered after about ten days of its outbreak.”

Doctor Jamaluddin Noori, head of the infectious diseases department of the Jawzjan Public Health Department, said that the health status of the infected patients was satisfactory and they were under intensive care.

“The only way to fight this disease is to increase awareness about it in the public”, he said.

Abdul Aziz, a staff member of the hospital who is infected with Congo disease, told Pajhwok: “Before contracting the disease, I suffered from severe pain”.  “Now I have recovered with the efforts of doctors”, he added.

aw/ma

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