Two house officers at Karachi’s Jinnah Hospital have developed symptoms suspected to be linked to the Congo virus, hospital sources confirmed.
According to the sources, both doctors had provided medical treatment to a Congo virus patient last week. The patient, who was admitted for treatment, passed away on June 19 at the Sindh Infectious Diseases Hospital.
Executive Director of Jinnah Hospital, Dr. Shahid Rasool, stated that both doctors began experiencing high fever and abdominal pain. One of them is currently isolated at home, while the other has been admitted to the hospital’s Medical ICU.
Dr. Rasool added that one of the doctors is showing nearly 90% of the symptoms associated with the Congo virus. Notably, the symptoms appeared just one day after they treated the infected patient. PCR test samples from both doctors have been sent to a laboratory, and results are expected by Monday.
He further noted that a fever screening desk has been set up in the hospital’s emergency department. However, the hospital lacks adequate infrastructure to establish a large-scale isolation unit. Any future steps regarding the setup of isolation facilities will follow directives from the provincial health department.