Pakistan reports three deaths from Congo virus

Times of Oman

20-06-2025

Islamabad [Pakistan]: Three deaths from the Congo virus have been recorded in Pakistan on Thursday, which include two fatalities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and one in Karachi, The Express Tribune reported.
The victim in Sindh has been identified as a 25-year-old fisherman from Ibrahim Hyderi, while fatalities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have been reported from Karak and North Waziristan.
Health officials said Muhammad Zubair, a resident of Malir district, first experienced symptoms like high fever, muscle pain, abdominal discomfort, coughing, diarrhoea, bleeding, and loss of consciousness on June 16.
He was admitted to Jinnah Hospital, where doctors suspected he had the Congo virus infection. He was shifted to the Sindh Infectious Diseases Hospital due to a lack of specialised treatment facilities, and he died there at 7 am on June 19.
The Sindh Health Department has sent an active search and response to the impacted area. Contact tracing efforts have been conducted, with people who were in close contact with the deceased being identified and monitored.
So far, no other cases have been reported. Residents and the family of the victim have been advised to follow strict precautionary measures to stop further spread, The Express Tribune reported.
The fatality came after another death was reported from the virus earlier this week, when a 42-year-old man from Malir district was taken to Indus Hospital in Korangi on June 16 and died the next day.
Two Congo virus patients from Karak and North Waziristan districts died at Hayatabad Medical Complex in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. These fatalities have increased the death toll in the province to three.
Meanwhile, three more patients infected with the virus are receiving treatment in isolation wards at the hospital. Health Advisor Ehtesham Ali said contact tracing and sanitisation operations have begun at the homes of the deceased and the infected, The Express Tribune reported.
He further said that the advisory about the Congo virus was shared with all hospitals in Pakistan before Eid al-Adha, as the increased movement and slaughter of sacrificial animals increase the risk of transmission.