FIROZKOH (Pajhwok): Health officials in western Ghor province say measles cases have increased this year, reporting that 994 children have been hospitalisedwith the disease at the provincial hospital over the past ten months, with six deaths recorded.
They are urging families to take their children to health centres as soon as symptoms appear.
What is measles?
Fazl-ul-Haq Farjad, a doctor at the Ghor Provincial Hospital, said measles is a viral and highly contagious disease that mostly affects children and spreads through coughing, sneezing and close contact with an infected person.
The illness usually begins with a high fever, cough, runny nose and red eyes. After a few days, red rashes appear on the skin, first on the face and then spreading to other parts of the body.
Increase in measles cases in Ghor
Farjad expressed concern in an interview with Pajhwokabout the rise in measles cases this year.
“In the past ten months, 994 patients were admitted and treated, and unfortunately we recorded six deaths due to measles during this period,” he said.
“This disease is unfortunately spreading because it is highly contagious and quickly passes from one child to another.”
He added that 20 children with measles are currently hospitalised at the provincial hospital.
According to him, 618 measles cases were recorded at the hospital last year, but no deaths were reported.
He noted that although measles can often be treated, families should take their children to health centres as soon as they notice symptoms so the disease can be controlled and prevented from spreading further.
Lack of knowledge about the disease
Nargis, 29, a mother of four and a resident of the Dara-e-Qazi area of Firozkoh, said her eight-month-old baby contracted measles, but because she initially underestimated the illness, the child’s condition worsened.
“At first my baby had fever and cough, and I used medicines available at home,” she said. “But a few days later his chest began wheezing and he had difficulty breathing. I had to take him to a doctor, and the doctors said he had measles and immediately admitted him to hospital. Fortunately, he is now gradually recovering.”
Nargis said many other mothers also take their children’s illnesses lightly and use self-medication, which often worsens the condition.
She stressed that increasing women’s awareness about disease prevention and treatment plays an important role in reducing infections and described greater attention to this issue as an urgent necessity.
Meanwhile, Razia, 35, a resident of Shahrak-e-Muhajireen in Firozkoh, who brought her measles-infected child to the provincial hospital, also said she had delayed taking her child to the doctor.
She explained that she believed her child would recover through home remedies.
“It had been three days since my child developed measles, but he had a high fever and severe chest tightness,” she said. “We came here and the doctors are taking good care of him. The problem is that we buy the medicines ourselves. We hope our child will recover soon. No one has informed us about measles or other diseases, and we do not know much about them.”
She also called on the government and health organisations to raise awareness among women about diseases.
Measles vaccination for children
Abdul Wahid Hamas, head of the Ghor Public Health Department, said: “We launched a province-wide measles vaccination campaign across Ghor. Our teams are also providing services at health centres. Large television screens have been installed to raise awareness among visitors about diseases.”
He said that more than 50,000 children in the province had received the measles vaccine over the past ten months, and the process was continuing.
He added that patients with measles who visit health centres can receive vaccination, medical care and information about diseases.
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