21pc of children in Karachi have stomach worms, say experts

KARACHI: About 21 per cent of children in Karachi have stomach worms which is affecting their mental and physical development.

These views were expressed by health experts and provincial health department officials while addressing a press conference recently at the Karachi Press Club.

Dr Akram Sultan, director health Karachi, Dr Noor Muhammad Shah, deputy director general health Sindh, Qadeer Baig, director Pakistan Deworming Programme, Anila Shifa, Dr Abrar Kazmi and Dr Obaid-ur-Rehman addressed the press conference.

Dr Akram Sultan said that from November 1 to Nov 5, about 4.2 million children in Karachi will be given medicine for killing stomach worms. The medicine is like chewing gum and has been provided by the World Health Organization (WHO). Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) has also approved the drug.

The campaign will cover all the seven districts of Karachi during which school-going children from class I to X will get the medicine while all the government hospitals in the city will have two weeks at their disposal to cover all the schools.

Dr Sultan said that about 10,500 health workers will be engaged for administration of the medicine and they have also been given the necessary training. He appealed to the parents to take care of their children.

Qadeer Baig said that the problem of stomach worms in children is global and at present 98 countries of the world are giving medicines to children to deal with this problem. The measures were taken five years ago and now the rate of stomach worms in children in the world has come down to less than 5pc. But the percentage is still high in Pakistan.

He further said that in some areas of Pakistan, especially in Rawalpindi, the rate of stomach worms in children has been found to be 56pc while in some areas of Punjab and Azad Kashmir the rate is 35 to 40pc.

He added that about 4.2m children in Karachi would be given medicine to eradicate stomach worms, of which only 10pc study in government schools, 40pc are students of private schools and 50pc students study in madressahs. Some don’t go to school at all.

Dr Noor Mohammad Shah, deputy director general, non-communicable diseases, Sindh, referred to the different types of stomach worms and said that one type of worm is hookworm which is found in the intestines of children. They suck blood, which results in anaemia in children.

He requested the parents to give their children medicine to get rid of stomach worms. The medicine takes only two hours to work and has negligible side effects.