Dhaka, Dec 14 (The New Age): The number of patients with cold related diseases has increased in the
last couple of weeks since countrywide winter is stepping in.
The
physicians said they were getting patients, specially children and
old-aged people, suffering from different cold related diseases at their
hospitals as well as at their private chambers.
Common cold-related
illnesses such as asthma, pneumonia, bronchiolitis, bronchitis,
rotavirus diarrhoea and skin diseases are spreading, physicians said.
Dhaka
Shishu Hospital received patients mostly with cold related diseases in
last couple of weeks, resident physician Prabir Kumar Sarkar told New
Age.
‘About 70 per cent of the patients we received are cold related disease patients,’ he said.
‘But
many patients could not come to the hospitals due to country wide
blockade. Mainly the severe patients come to the hospital emergency,’ he
said.
Prabir Kumar Sarkar said the patients living in the city were mainly visiting the out patient department in the last few weeks.
‘The regular and normal patients do not come with risk during hartals and blockades,’ he said.
Dhaka
Shishu Hospital records showed that only 432 patients visited the OPD
on Wednesday while the number was 700 to 1,000 in regular time. The
number of admitted patient was 487 of whom 98 patients were admitted on
Wednesday.
A total of 394 patients visited the OPD and emergency department on Thursday till 12:45pm, the officials said.
‘But
it would not reflect the real picture. The real number is very high,’
Prabir Kumar Sarkar said adding that many parents living outside the
city phoned them. ‘We asked them to go to the nearby hospital.’
Mostly, children and aged persons are patients of cold-related illnesses, said doctors.
Hospital
officials said several children with respiratory illnesses, rotavirus
and common cold and cough took treatment at the out patient department
at Dhaka Shishu Hospital over the last few days.
People having
respiratory problem or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease should take
antibiotics in consultation with physicians, said Be-Nazir Ahmed,
director of disease control under the directorate general of health
services.
The old aged people and also the people having respiratory illness were also suffering from the cold, he said
He emphasised on early treatment as he said it could save lives and cure patients quickly.
The
DGHS had started campaign asking the parents to bring their children
having pneumonia symptoms or breathing problems to the nearby hospitals
immediately.
The doctors said unwillingness of breastfeeding of the
children, fast breathing, breathing with sounds and chest restriction
were the common symptoms of respiratory illness.