9pc of Dhaka city population infected with coronavirus

An estimated 9 per cent of the capital city Dhaka’s population have been infected by the novel coronavirus. In 5 per cent of the city’s households, at least one person had contracted the virus. However, the outbreak of coronavirus of relatively less in the slums.

These facts and figures were revealed in a the primary results of survey jointly carried out by the government’s Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) and the Institute of Cholera and Diarrhoeal Disease Research Bangladesh ( icddr,b). The US aid agency USAID and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation provided support for the survey.

Speaking to Prothom Alo about the report on Sunday, director of IEDCR Meerjady Sabrina said, “The results of the survey will be released shortly.”

Acting director general of the Directorate General Health Services (DGHS), Abul Bashar Mohammad Khurshid, on Sunday presented a summary of the survey, ‘Transmission Dynamics of COVID-19 in Bangladesh’, to the media. IEDCR presented further details at its news bulletin on Monday.

The survey was carried out in the Dhaka North and Dhaka South city corporation areas. There are no reliable records of the population in the two city corporations. However, according to World Bank records of 2017, Dhaka city’s population was 18 million. If an estimated 9 per cent of this population is infected, that means 1.62 million persons have coronavirus. This number is much higher than the number of cased projected by the health directorate. According to Sunday’s update on the IEDCR website, the number of coronavirus cases in Dhaka was only 66,630.

There had so far been no scientific account of the number of coronavirus cases in the country. The information which is released is based on the positive results of the samples tested. However, many people with coronavirus symptoms have avoided being tested. Firstly, the process of being tested is not easy. Again, many hesitate to be tested as they may face social stigma. Many do not take the risk of testing themselves for fear of losing their jobs. Then again, many do not have confidence in the tests due to reports of inaccuracies and corruption in the sample testing procedures.

This indicates that people can have the virus without the symptoms. That is why it is very important to maintain social distancing, wear masks and maintain hygiene rules.
Meerjady Sabrina, director, IEDCR

So far 1,273,168 samples have been tested for Covid in the country. And 290,506 have tested positive.

Public health expert Mushtaq Hossain was unwilling to comment on the matter as he had not received the survey results. However, he said, “At least 10 per cent more people are moving around with mild coronavirus symptoms than the number of cases reported.”

Survey statistics

They survey carried out from 18 April to 5 July, covered 3,227 households of Dhaka South and Dhaka North city corporation areas. Information was collected from house to house and blood and swab tests were also taken. The survey was also conducted in 720 households of 6 slums. The researchers said that the swab tests were conducted with PCR machines and the blood tests hadn’t been completed as yet.

During the survey it was noted that in 5 per cent of the city’s households, at least one person had the symptoms of fever, cough, sore throat or respiratory problems. Again, in 15 per cent of the households where no one had these symptoms, at least one person had the virus.

Persons of all ages had contracted the virus, according to the survey. However, the most affected were persons of 40 years and above. The rate of infection in persons of this age group was 13 percent. And 12 per cent of the infected were in the 15 to 19 age bracket. The lowest percent was coronavirus cases was among infants. Six percent of the infected were below 10 years old.

Of those who tested positive for coronavirus in the RT-PCR tests, 93 per cent had fever, 36 percent had cough, 17 percent had sore throats and 5 per cent has respiratory problems. Out of 211 persons with coronavirus symptoms, 15 percent got admitted to hospital. In a one-month follow up during the survey, it was seen that one of them had died.

A researcher involved in the survey, on condition of anonymity, told Prothom Alo, if the number of cases in Dhaka and the rest of the country are added up, it will be seen that the coronavirus burden is huge. The survey has indications of just how immense is the community burden of coronavirus.

While 9 per cent of the people in Dhaka city are infected with the virus, the rate of infection is less in the slums. In the slums, the rate of infection is 6 percent. No one has an accurate explanation as to why the transmission is less in the slums.

The survey showed that in families where not even a single member had coronavirus symptoms, samples of 8 percent of the members tested positive.

IEDCR director Meerjady Sabrina said, “This indicates that people can have the virus without the symptoms. That is why it is very important to maintain social distancing, wear masks and maintain hygiene rules.”