Luwero district has registered a high number of people contracting Pneumonia disease.
According to Luwero district health report on Mortality and Morbidity for the financial year 2021/22, pneumonia is the second killer and third most common disease in the area.
The report indicates that the district registered a total of 17,679 cases of pneumonia of which 719 cases were severe. The report further indicates that 6749 cases were of children below the age of five years and others for both children and adults above five years. The disease also claimed the lives of 31 patients of which 16 were children below five years.
Dr. Innocent Nkonwa, the Luwero district health officer explains that pneumonia-like most common disease is preventable but the residents are exposed to environments that spread the disease. He has warned residents against living in poorly ventilated houses, overcrowded public places, and transport among others.
Dr. Nkonwa however noted that if people seek early screening, the disease can be treated and doesn’t progress into other complications. He also asked parents to ensure that their children receive the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine to prevent them from contracting the infectious disease.
Stephen Sseruyange, the coordinator of Bukuma Organisation of People Living with HIV/AIDs says that there is still need to create more awareness about the disease since some people and patients treat it as a mere cough.
“Several people when they experience any signs related to cough, just rush to pharmacies and buy drugs without testing. You find that the disease will progress to severe pneumonia because someone is taking wrong treatment,” said Sseruyange.
Lydia Kisakye, a resident of Kavule zone in Luwero town says that poor ventilation stems from the inability to construct good houses or rent better housing units.
“You see, there is an influx of people in towns chasing for few houses available. So we end up renting poor houses and these also host many people something that may contribute to spreading of the infections,” added another resident Namusisi.
The district report also indicated that 114,623 cases of cold and cough (no pneumonia) were registered in health units within the year.
Malaria remained the most common and top killer disease after it claimed the lives of 99 residents in the year. About 158,389 residents were treated for malaria in the district within the year.
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