113 HIV positive child patients died in Larkana since April 2019
2028 out of 2189 HIV positive children in Ratodero are on treatment, while 105 have died since April 2019
The Sindh Government’s Health Department has been criticized for withholding important information regarding the number of HIV cases, treatments, and deaths in Larkana and Ratodero. However, Dr. Muhammad Naeem, Additional Director of Communicable Disease Control (CDC) for HIV/AIDS in Sindh, recently released a statement revealing the numbers.
In Larkana, there are 702 registered cases of HIV in children, of which 591 are receiving treatment while 113 have died. Meanwhile, in Ratodero, there are 2189 registered cases, with 2028 on treatment and 105 deaths since April 2019.
Dr. Imran Akbar Arbani, who first detected the outbreak in Ratodero, has warned that 30-35% of cases sent for blood screening each month are testing positive, indicating a growing problem.
However, due to the increasing numbers, screening has been reduced, and only one person is currently available to carry out tests in Ratodero. Patients are also struggling to obtain proper medication for coinfections.
One parent, Imtiaz Jalbani, has lost two of his five HIV-positive daughters. He says that while treatment medicines are provided, drugs for coinfections are not, and the family must purchase them on the open market as they are very poor.
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Additionally, CD-4 and Viral Load Tests, which determine the effectiveness of treatment, are not being done. The PPP Chairman, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, promised affected families jobs, transportation, and endowment funds four years ago, but these promises have yet to be fulfilled.
Dr. Hola Ram, who formerly headed the HIV/AIDS Treatment Center at Chandka Hospital, suggests several measures that should be taken to address the situation.
These include mandatory screening before marriage, punishment for quack doctors, strict adherence to Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for hairdressers, and proper blood transfusion practices.
Illegal blood banks should also be shut down, and mass awareness campaigns should be launched among villagers to promote prevention as the best solution.
