Congo virus case reported in southwest Pakistan amid high alert for mpox outbreak

A worker cleans the floor of an isolation ward prepared for mpox patients at the Police and Services hospital in Peshawar on August 20, 2024. (AFP)

• Balochistan has reported 23 cases of Congo fever this year, with five deaths attributed to the disease
• Medical practitioners say most Congo cases are diagnosed in the province during the summer season

QUETTA: Officials in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province confirmed a case of Congo virus on Friday, with health authorities across the country already on alert amid an ongoing mpox outbreak in various parts of the world.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the fatality rate for Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF), commonly known as the Congo virus, ranges from 10 percent to 40 percent.
This implies that out of every 100 infected people, between 10 and 40 may succumb to the illness, depending on factors such as the quality of health care, the timeliness of treatment and the patient’s overall health condition.
The disease is primarily transmitted through tick bites or contact with infected animal blood or tissues, with the virus being endemic in parts of Africa, Europe and Asia.
A senior doctor at Quetta’s Fatima Jinnah Chest Hospital told Arab News that a 14-year-old boy, Siraj Ahmed, from Khanozai, 77 kilometers from Quetta, has tested positive for the virus.
“The infected patient is being treated in the Congo isolation ward, but we have another suspected Congo patient whose report is yet to be confirmed,” Dr. Zubair Mandokhail, deputy medical superintendent at the facility, said.
Balochistan has reported 23 cases of Congo fever this year, with five deaths attributed to the disease since January.
Most Congo cases are diagnosed in the province during the summer season, according to local medical practitioners.
The likelihood of its spread increases around Eid Al-Adha, an Islamic festival celebrated after the annual Hajj pilgrimage when people buy and slaughter animals in large numbers.
Many Afghan patients infected by the virus also travel to Quetta for better treatment and medical care.
Dr. Ali Ahmed Reki, the medical superintendent at Fatima Jinnah Chest Hospital, said doctors had handled nearly 45 suspected Congo cases this year, of which 23 had tested positive.
“We have been receiving suspected patients in routine but the number of cases rises during Eid Al-Adha when a majority people visit cattle markets to buy sacrificial animals,” he told Arab News.