PESHAWAR (Kashmir English): The outbreak of conjunctivitis, an eye infection, has hit various flood-hit districts of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) as the federating unit has reported 22,863 cases in the month of August alone.
In view of the alarming situation, the provincial Health Department has issued an advisory, urging affected individuals to self-isolate.
As the province reported 22,863 conjunctivitis cases in August, Swat recorded the highest number of cases at 4,204.
Lady Reading Hospital, the largest healthcare facility in the province, has confirmed receiving over 150 eye infection cases daily, while five doctors in the ophthalmology department have also been infected.
Similarly, another facility in the province, Khyber Teaching Hospital, reports 60 to 70 cases daily, while Hayatabad Medical Complex entertains around 80 patients a day.
Provincial health department data suggests that from January to August this year, a total of 97,212 such cases were reported across the province, with the majority coming from Nowshera, Peshawar, Swat, Shangla, Battagram, Mardan, and Buner.
The department noted that the recent floods have contributed to an alarming rise in the cases, particularly in the hardest-hit areas.
Eye infection cases
In August alone, Peshawar recorded 2,254 conjunctivitis cases, Buner 1,743, Shangla 1,689, Lower Dir 1,484, Nowshera 1,194, Battagram 1,080, and Malakand reported 1,235 cases.
The Health Department has warned that the eye infection spreads rapidly, similar to the flu. Patients have been advised to keep their bedding, pillows and towels separate, and use sunglasses or protective eyewear in sunlight. The infection typically lasts up to a week, according to the experts.
