Surto de conjutivite
Maputo, 29 Mar (AIM) – Maputo Central Hospital (HCM), the largest health unit in Mozambique, has recorded over 1,000 cases of conjunctivitis since the beginning of March.
According to the director of the Adult Emergency Department, Dino Lopes, who was speaking to reporters on Thursday, in Maputo, on the epidemiological situation, “as of 27 March, we have a cumulative total of 1,048 cases of conjunctivitis, of which 860 are cases of hemorrhagic conjunctivitis”.
Lopes added that “Among adults, there is a cumulative total of 467 cases, 269 cases in children and 13 cases among the elderly”.
He advised people not to scratch their eyes, and to avoid direct contact with infected people, including kissing and shaking hands.
Lopes urged infected people to avoid self-medication, bearing in mind that recently some families have turned to pharmacies instead of going to the nearest health centre.
“Self-medication is not recommended”, he said. “The most important thing is that anyone who has symptoms of conjunctivitis, such as itchy eyes, when they notice in the mirror that their eyes are reddened, should go to the health centre nearest their home”.
“The pharmacy ends up giving a medicine that may not be suitable”, he warned.
The health authorities are also discouraging the use of urine and other traditional alternative means to solve the problem of conjunctivitis.
The health authorities have recorded over 8,000 cases of conjunctivitis in seven provinces in less than a month, which makes the disease an alarming public health problem.
(AIM)
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