For the past two weeks, the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b) hospital has been witnessing a massive spike in diarrhoea patients that has broken all records set over the past 40 years, according to sources at the hospital.
Data from icddr,b shows that a total of 8,437 patients were admitted to the specialized hospital for diarrhoea treatment between March 21 and Sunday, which amounts to an average of 1,200 patients admitted each day. The highest 1,272 patients were admitted on March 23.
The authorities of the hospital said doctors, nurses, and other health workers are struggling to cope with the pressure of patients, which is being amplified by the free treatment on offer there.
They added that the main reasons for the surge were a sudden rise in the temperature and widespread consumption of unhealthy food and water.
In previous years, daily diarrhoea patient admissions to icddr,b peaked at around 800-1000.
Dr Baharul Alam, head of hospitals at icddr,b, said the acute outbreak is likely to continue for at least another week.
“The diarrhoea outbreak this year has been an unanticipated one. We expect from our previous experience that the situation will plateau after two or three weeks,” he said.
Diarrhoea outbreaks are common in Bangladesh on either side of the monsoon season, but they rarely occur this early in the year, he added.
“The summer period is usually when pathogens breed. We need to research why there has been a change in the arrival time,” Dr Baharul Alam further said.
Patients undergoing treatment at icddr,b hospital Mehedi HasanIn a virtual bulletin on Sunday, Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) Director (Disease Control) Dr Nazmul Islam acknowledged the worsening diarrhoea situation.
“With the arrival of the summer season, we are getting information from different parts of the country that the number of diarrhoea patients is increasing, especially in Dhaka city. I would like to urge you not to wait for the crisis period and to take medical advice when seeing any symptoms,” he said.
The DGHS does not have countrywide data on the diarrhoea situation, but the directorate’s Management Information System wing are closely monitoring the situation at icddr,b, the DGHS director added.
Diarrhoea patients at icddr,b are currently being treated at the main hospital building as well as at two makeshift field hospitals. According to Dr Bahar, as many as 600 patients are undergoing treatment at the facilities at any one time.
The patients are mostly from Dhaka city, especially from the Jatrabari, Shanir Akhra, and Kadamtali areas. Adults make up the majority of patients.
Increasing number of patients dead on arrival
icddr,b records show that there has been no death from diarrhoea at the hospital yet, but a significant number of patients were dying on the way to get treatment.
icddr,b Public relations Officer Tariful Islam Khan urged patients to seek treatment from nearby medical centres or hospitals before going to the specialized hospital.
“Traffic is a huge problem in Dhaka right now. Patients are losing their lives due to dehydration while trying to cross the traffic in Mohakhali. Even this morning, a middle-aged woman from Uttara was already dead when she was brought here. We strongly urge the patients to take treatment from home or visit nearby hospitals, because diarrhoea facilities are available in all medical centres,” he said.
Health officials have advised drinking safe water, avoiding unhealthy food outdoors, and maintaining hygiene.
“We advised everybody to wash hands frequently during Covid, but people have forgotten that habit. It is absolutely essential that you wash your hands properly before eating, drink safe water, and street food is completely prohibited. We will give treatment to everybody regardless, but if people are not aware of these then the situation will get worse,” said Dr Bahar.
