Health officials ask citizens to take Congo Fever as a serious disease, after the death of five people, including two doctors, due to this disease in the north of the country. According to health officials, currently, more than 30 people are suffering from this disease and are being treated in hospitals.
Medical experts identify Congo fever as a widespread disease that spreads to humans by mite bites or contact with animal blood or secretions from animal carcasses.
This disease has symptoms such as fever, malaise, nausea, diarrhoea and internal and external bleeding.
Dr Najibullah Tawana, head of public health in Balkh, says that 10 cases of Congo fever have been registered in Abu Ali Sina Balkhi Hospital.
“Unfortunately, three people, including a doctor, have died due to this disease. We have made necessary preparations in hospitals with 50 infectious beds and we ask people to be ready to donate blood to the sick.”
At the same time, the health officials in Jawzjan say that two people have died from Congo fever in this province, one of them is a doctor, and four health workers and two others have also been infected with this disease.
Qari Zabihullah Hossaini, head of public health in Jawzjan, said that a person suffering from Congo fever went to the provincial hospital of Jawzjan for treatment, and two doctors and several health workers contracted the disease because of treating this patient.
“A few days ago in Jawzjan Province, several doctors who were busy serving the patients were infected with Congo fever. Unfortunately, one of our doctors named Haleem died from this disease.”
Stories of Patients
The 50-bed infectious disease hospital in Mazar-e-Sharif is the only treatment centre in the north of the country that treats Congo fever patients.
Dr Khalil, one of the doctors of this hospital in Balkh, says that most of the patients from the villages come to this hospital, especially the people who deal with animals.
He adds that only in May of this year, 24 people with Congo fever visited the Balkh Infectious Disease Hospital (Antani Hospital), two of them died and the others are either under treatment or have recovered and left the hospital.
“The patients were from Balkh, Samangan, Jawzjan and Faryab provinces. Two of them who died were residents of Balkh and Khulm districts.”
Congo fever sufferers who have been treated at Mazar Infectious Disease Hospital also call the reason for infection to this disease from contact with animals.
Zulikha, one of the residents of the Dawlat Abad district of Balkh, who is hospitalized due to Congo fever, says: “We keep cows and calves and this is our duty. That’s why I got sick and got a fever and now my condition is bad.”
Ahmad Shah, another resident of Balkh, who is neither a farmer nor a butcher, says that Congo is a very dangerous disease.
“During the first two days, I had a fever and I went to the doctor on the street and inject an ampule, but I didn’t get better. After six days, I came to the hospital and thanks to God, I am healthy.”
Najibullah that one of his relatives getting Congo fever, says that this disease is transmitted to humans through mites.
“My uncle is infected with Congo fever. This disease is transmitted to humans through small and large mites. I ask people not to be careless and take the doctors’ words seriously.”
Disbeliefs
Despite the fact that there are not a few people hospitalized due to Congo fever in hospital and struggling with this disease, some people do not believe in the danger of this disease for various reasons.
Faqir Mohammad, a resident of the Shulgara district of Balkh province, says that many people in this district are farmers who have been dealing with livestock for years. They were neither infected with Congo fever Congolese nor any other disease.
“I removed the mite from the udder of my dairy cow several times by hand, I did not get Congo or any other disease.”
Allah Mohammad, another resident of Balkh province, says that he has been a livestock farmer for many years and has spent his life keeping animals, but he has never been infected with Congo fever.
“If cattle and sheep mites could make someone sick, half of the farmers and livestock farmers in the districts would have gotten sick by now.”
The Need to Inform
While a number of rural people are not afraid of mites and Congo fever, health officials ask the media and the Department of Hajj and Endowments to cooperate with the Department of Public Health in informing people to prevent the increase of Congo fever cases.
Simultaneously, Zabihullah Noorani, the head of information and culture of Balkh, says that this department is trying to provide information and awareness to the people about the dangers and how to prevent getting Congo fever through private and government media.
“Media has a special responsibility in informing. If we can inform people about this or make someone aware of the Congo fever dangers, it means saving that person’s life.”
Officials in the Department of Hajj and Endowments of Balkh Province consider the cooperation of religious scholars important in informing people. Saifuddin Azizi, head of Balkh Hajj and Endowments says: “We ask all the scholars to inform people in the villages. So when they see the symptoms of this disease, they go to the hospital.”
Congo fever disease was registered for the first time in 1994 in the Crimea city of Ukraine and was called hemorrhagic fever.
Then cleared that symptoms of this disease were recorded in the Republic of Congo in 1956, therefore this disease was renamed from hemorrhagic fever to Congo fever.
In Afghanistan, this disease is also known as Congo fever, and health officials advise that people should use gloves, masks and protective clothing when slaughtering animals. According to doctors, by the arrival of Eid al-Adha, citizens have more contact with animals and if the people do not observe hygiene, the risk of increasing the number of people suffering from this disease will increase.
Translated by: Sadaf Yarmal
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