Punjab Reports Over 70 Cases Of Vision Loss

APP

Lahore: Diabetes patients in Lahore, Kasur and Jhang districts administered locally manufactured Avastin injections to address retinal damage but the injections led to severe infections, ultimately resulting in the loss of eyesight, informed Health Department official sources.

Among others, four individuals from Kasur, namely Chaudhry Shabbir, Main Aslam, Taufeeq, and Nasrin Bibi, also suffered irreversible vision loss, revealed sources.

In the meantime, the number of vision loss cases in Punjab has surged to over 70, stated sources.

Punjab Caretaker Health Minister Dr Javed Akram revealed that a private hospital in Lahore administered Avastin injections to several eye disease patients using separate syringes at different times, resulting in many patients losing their eyesight.

According to Dr Javed, people were not affected by the side effects of this injection but rather by the use of counterfeit injections. The primary issue lies in the misuse of the injections, he added.

Dr Akram explained that the genuine problem with the sixteen-milliliter injections is their limited shelf life after being taken out of their protective seal.

The Punjab government has formed a five-member committee to probe the incident. The Punjab Health Department has pledged to take strict and practical action against the manufacturers of fake medicine, irrespective of their status, dealing with such elements as per law.

Meanwhile, the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP), along with provincial health authorities, has formed a high-level committee to investigate the sale of the ‘altered, dispensable, or diluted’ form of Avastin injection.

Punjab Health Department officials stated that suspected batches of the alleged drug have been recalled while further distribution has been stopped until the verification of its quality through sampling and laboratory testing.

The Punjab government is also taking strict measures to contain the spread of pink-eye infection. In this regard, Punjab Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi added that school closures are also part of the government’s measures to counter or slow down the infection in Punjab.