Hospitals in Karachi are reporting a sharp rise in seasonal influenza cases, with major medical facilities treating growing numbers of patients. Dr Irfan Siddiqui, administrative coordinator and in-charge of the Emergency and Resuscitation Department at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC), said the hospital was receiving more than 80 influenza patients a day.
He said cases at JPMC had doubled, which he linked to changing weather, dust and air pollution. Dr Siddiqui warned that the virus spreads quickly within households, and that an entire family could be infected if one member caught it.
Civil Hospital Karachi reports rising flu patient numbers
Civil Hospital Karachi is also seeing more patients, with officials saying more than 50 cases are reported daily. Dr Faisal Mahmood said cases had been climbing rapidly across the city over the past one to two months.
He added that about 200 cases had been reported over the past few months, but warned the real figure could be much higher because most patients were not tested. Dr Mahmood said the flu season usually peaks in December and January, but this year the surge began earlier than usual.
Nationwide shortage of flu vaccines across Pakistan
A shortage of seasonal influenza vaccines has also been reported across Pakistan, with both multinational and Chinese-manufactured vaccines reportedly unavailable in the market. According to officials, supplies from multinational pharmaceutical companies are expected to arrive in November or December.
Drug control authorities said limited stocks of vaccines from Chinese manufacturers had also run out. Amid the shortage, attempts to sell allegedly counterfeit influenza vaccines have come to light, raising concerns about public access to safe and genuine vaccines.
