13pc of fever, cough, respiratory disease cases are influenza

Twenty years of observation shows that influenza is becoming a major public health concern in Bangladesh. Thirteen per cent of patients admitted to hospitals with common fever and cough or severe acute respiratory infections have influenza.

The same observation also shows a concerning presence of avian influenza, or bird flu, in the country.

Since 2007, the state-run Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) and the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b) have been monitoring the influenza situation in the country.

They are supported by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

At a seminar held at the IEDCR conference room on Tuesday, scientists and researchers from the two institutions presented their observations and analyses.

Representatives of the four institutions, as well as officials from the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, several government medical colleges and district hospitals, the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), and public and private research institutions attended the event.

Public health experts at the event stressed the importance of following health and hygiene measures and raising public awareness to prevent influenza. A large number of researchers and scientists said influenza vaccines protect people. So, people in Bangladesh should take influenza vaccines in March.

Tahmeed Ahmed, executive director of icddr,b and special guest at the event, said the joint influenza surveillance system run by IEDCR and icddr,b is globally important. The initiative is supporting the global disease surveillance system.

“Vaccination is one way to prevent influenza. But following health measures, wearing masks and washing hands regularly are also important. The media has an important role in preventing influenza,” he also said.

In the main presentation, IEDCR Associate Professor Monalisa described the background, methods, importance and objectives of influenza surveillance.

She said 236,380 people were hospitalised with influenza in Bangladesh in 2019. In 2011–12, 16,804 people died of influenza in the country. She said influenza is a burden on the country’s economy. There are 157 national influenza centres in 138 countries, including IEDCR.

It was said at the event that IEDCR and icddr,b have monitored patients with influenza-like illness and severe acute respiratory infections at 15 public hospitals and a private hospital for 20 years.

These include district hospitals in Thakurgaon, Naogaon, Satkhira, Narsingdi, Habiganj, Cox’s Bazar, Joypurhat and Patuakhali; Jashore and Kurmitola General hospitals; Dhaka Medical College Hospital; Shaheed Tajuddin Ahmad Medical College Hospital in Gazipur; Cumilla Medical College Hospital; Chattogram Medical College Hospital; Dinajpur Medical College Hospital; and the private Jalalabad Ragib-Rabeya Medical College Hospital in Sylhet.

Influenza is a viral infectious disease. It causes fever, cough, headache and body aches. It spreads through sneezing and coughing by infected people or through contact with an infected person. Over the past 20 years, 172,792 patients presenting with influenza-like illness or severe respiratory infections were brought under surveillance at these hospitals.

Samples from each patient were tested in laboratories. The tests found influenza in 22,284 patients, or 13 per cent. Influenza was more common among people aged 5 to 24, while deaths were higher among people aged over 60.

It is generally believed that influenza is more common during winter. This notion is incorrect. Presenting 20 years of data, icddr,b Associate Scientist Fahmida Chowdhury said April to September is the influenza season, with the highest incidence in June and July.

The scientist said five groups face a higher risk of influenza: health workers, pregnant women, children under five, people with multiple chronic diseases, and those aged over 60.

The seminar held a lengthy discussion on influenza vaccination. Researchers and participants in the open discussion spoke about vaccinating or bringing the five high-risk groups under vaccination coverage.

However, there were differing views on vaccinating everyone in the country. Some said influenza vaccination is needed every year. Vaccinating everyone annually would require a huge amount of money. Others said including the vaccine in the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) would not be justified.

icddr,b scientist Fahmida Chowdhury gave her view on when influenza vaccination should be administered. She said vaccination should be given one month before the start of the season. Therefore, March is the appropriate time for influenza vaccination.

Surveillance has found that avian influenza, or bird flu, is increasing in Bangladesh. Researchers and scientists from the two institutions advised remaining alert and cautious about the disease.

The first human case of bird flu in Bangladesh was detected in 2008. Since then, a total of 16 people have been diagnosed with bird flu in the country—14 men and two women. Of the 16 patients, 11 were children, and two died.

Researchers said bird flu infections are on the rise. Eight people were infected between 2008 and 2015, while another eight were identified in 2025 and 2026—four in each year. Bird flu is mainly spreading from poultry.

IEDCR Chief Scientific Officer and chair of the event, Zakir Hossain Habib, said widespread use of antibiotics has been observed in hospitals. He stressed the need for caution and said antibiotics should be used rationally.

The seminar was attended as chief guest by Sheikh Momena Moni, additional secretary of the Ministry of Health. Others who spoke included Syeda Jesmin Sultana, director general of the Global Health Emergency Response Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Manwar Morshed, an official of the US CDC in Dhaka; and Irene Isibor , emergency medical officer of the WHO.