LAHORE: Three more die of drug reaction

The death toll of drug reaction patients has climbed up to 132, with three more cardiac patients giving in on Saturday to fatal reaction from medicines distributed by the Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC), Lahore.

The Health Department has reported 109 casualties so far, including the two patients’ deaths due to reaction from medicines on Saturday.

According to sources in different hospitals, three cardiac patients ñ Shahida Bibi, 55, a resident of Rang Mahal and Ghulam Ali, 55, a resident of Kasur from the Services Hospital while Pervaiz, 60, a resident of Mozang admitted to Sir Ganga Ram Hospital ñ succumbed to the medicine reaction.

The Health Department has, however, confirmed death of two patients from Services Hospital due to the reaction of the medicines during the last 24 hours.

Meanwhile, the cardiac patients with complaints of drug reaction admitted to different hospitals are being given the antidote (Folnic Acid) and the doctors are hopeful that the health of the patients will improve within a few days. According to hospitals’ managements, the treatment has been started in the light of guidelines issued by the Health Department, however, the results of these guidelines have still to be matured as the casualties among cardiac patients continue unabated.

More than 400 people are under treatment in various hospitals in Lahore, while nearly 50 of them are reportedly in critical condition and kept in ICU and CCU for critical care.

Meanwhile, the Health Department further informed that a total of 280 patients are under treatment in various hospitals, including 149 in Services Hospital, 43 in Mayo Hospital, 39 in Jinnah Hospital, 24 in Sir Ganga Ram Hospital and 10 in Lahore General Hospital, four in Shaikh Zayed Hospital, Lahore, five in Ittefaq Hospital, Lahore, three in Allied Hospital, Faisalabad, two in Nishtar Hospital, Multan and one in DHQ Hospital, Rawalpindi.

The spokesman of Health Department said that 40 patients affected by reaction of medicines from PIC recovered and were discharged from various hospitals during the last 24 hours, which took the number of patients recovering from the reaction to 510.