• Death toll rises to 42 in Sindh this year
• Referring to study about high prevalence of rabies virus in dogs in Karachi, PMA official stresses need for urgent action to control canine population

KARACHI: Two more dog bite victims lost their lives to rabies on Monday, raising alarm amongst healthcare experts who urged the government to immediately put in place a mechanism for removing stray dogs from the streets and transferring them to designated shelters.

With the latest cases, the total number of recorded deaths from the deadly infectious disease has risen to 42.

Sources said the first victim, a 38-year-old man hailing from Hyderabad, died at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) on Monday.

“Patient Javed was a resident of Hyderabad and was brought to the emergency department yesterday [Sunday] around 11pm with complaints of hydrophobia, irritability, fever and dysphagia [discomfort in swallowing],” shared a JPMC doctor on the condition of anonymity.

The patient was bitten by a dog on the face four months back and his post-exposure preventive treatment status was unknown, he added.

The other dog-bite victim, the sources said, was 52-year-old Allahbad who was referred from Nawabshah to Liaquat University Hospital, Hyderabad. He passed away on Monday afternoon.

‘Govt seems least concerned’

“Free-roaming dogs are on a rampage across the province, injuring and killing people, including children, but the government seems least concerned,” regretted Dr Mirza Ali Azhar, representing the Pakistan Medical Association.

Dr Azhar, who is also part of a civil society initiative against rabies, emphasised that the problem was not rabies but the stray dogs attacking people.

“In 99 per cent of cases in our environment, rabies is a consequence of a dog bite. If there is no dog injury, there would be no rabies. Hence, we have to ensure that there is no dog on the street that could pose a threat to citizens.”

According to him, the solution to the complex issue is simple.

“Just catch dogs, isolate them and put them in designated shelters, where they could be neutered and fed by animal rights activists and local authorities,” he said.

Dr Azhar also referred to a recent Indus Hospital study, which has shown a high prevalence of rabies virus in Karachi’s street dogs.

“The findings pointed to substantial virus burden in stray dogs that underlines the need for urgent action to control the dog population,” he said.

The research, titled ‘Detection of Rabies Virus RNA in Dog-Bite Wounds in a Rabies-Endemic Area: Evidence from an Observational Cohort Study,’ revealed a strikingly high level of rabies virus circulation in the local canine population, with the virus detected in 64pc of samples.

Earlier, a 38-year-old man hailing from Diplo, Tharparkar, a 12-year-old boy from Hyderabad and a resident of Baldia town, Karachi, in his 70s, died of rabies.

A large number of rabies cases, experts say, go unreported as patients use home remedies or turn to faith healers for “treatment”.

They emphasised the need for public awareness, humane control of the dog population and the availability of appropriate treatment in hospitals.

While dog bites account for the majority of rabies cases, bites from potentially rabid wild animals can also transmit the virus.

After exposure, early wound cleansing, timely rabies vaccination and the administration of rabies immunoglobulin, if needed, can effectively prevent the disease, which is almost invariably fatal once clinical symptoms appear.

Published in Dawn, October 20th, 2026

KARACHI: Pakistan’s first nationally representative mental health survey has shown that nearly one in three adults is living with a diagnosable mental and behavioural disorder, highlighting a major public health challenge affecting millions of people across the country.

The findings come from the largest and most comprehensive mental health study ever conducted in Pakistan, say researchers representing the Pakistan Psychiatric Society (PPS).

The five-year research is published in the British Medical Journal.

The survey was led by Professor Raza-ur-Rahman from Hamdard University, Karachi, in collaboration with Brighton and Sussex Medical School UK, University of South Florida, US, and psychiatric institutions across Pakistan.

Experts term findings of first national mental health survey ‘most reliable’

Nearly 18,000 adults from all four provinces participated in the 2018-2022 study, providing the first nationally representative picture of mental health in the country.

Key findings

The study found that 32 per cent of adults were currently living with mental and behavioural disorders, while 38 per cent had experienced a disorder during their lifetime.

One in five adults met criteria for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). More than one in 10 adults had depression, whereas six per cent reported suicidal thoughts in the previous month.

Researchers also identified significant social inequalities in mental health. Higher rates of mental disorders were found among older adults, individuals with lower levels of education and income, unemployed people, and those who were widowed, divorced or separated.

Mental health problems were associated with substantial impairment in family life, social relationships and the ability to work.

“This survey provides the evidence needed to develop effective mental health policies and services in Pakistan. It identifies who is most at risk, where support is most needed, and the scale of the unmet need for care,” said lead investigator Prof Raza-ur-Rahman, currently heading the department of psychiatry at HU.

According to him, the researchers used international standard tools to carry out the survey and the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics identified the areas for survey and provided the sample size.

He hoped that it would contribute to reducing stigma and improving access to diagnosis and treatment for millions of people.

“For the first time, policymakers, healthcare planners and researchers now have reliable national data that can be used to strengthen mental health services, allocate resources more effectively and develop evidence-based programmes across the country,” he added.

The study represents a major milestone for mental health research in Pakistan and demonstrates the country’s growing capacity to undertake large-scale, internationally recognised public health research.

Prof Anjum Memon, Chair in Epidemiology and Public Health Medicine at Brighton and Sussex Medical School (UK) and the senior co-author of the study, said: “This is a landmark moment for mental health research in Pakistan. For decades, policymakers have had to rely on fragmented local studies or international estimates. We now have robust national evidence showing, for the first time, the true scale of mental and behavioural disorders across the country.”

These findings provide an invaluable evidence base for policymakers, clinicians and healthcare planners, not only in Pakistan but also in other low- and middle-income countries facing similar challenges, he added.

Mental health, researchers say, is increasingly recognised as an essential component of national health and economic development and they recommend greater integration of mental health services into primary healthcare, increased investment in community-based support systems, enhanced training for frontline health workers and sustained national efforts to reduce the stigma surrounding mental illness.

“Pakistan currently faces major challenges in the provision of mental healthcare, including limited specialist services and a shortage of trained mental health professionals. The survey findings will help inform future policy development, service planning, workforce training and community-based support programmes,” said President of PPS Prof Wajid Akhundzada.

Published in Dawn, October 18th, 2026