Artificial shortage of eye drops after conjunctivitis epidemic in Karachi
Karachi: After the outbreak of conjunctivitis, there has been a material shortage of eye drops in the city, while the prices of the available medicines and eye drops have increased dramatically.
The black marketing and hoarding of eye drops has enabled a profiteering market.
Medical experts have debunked the belief that red eye infection is caused by looking into the eyes of an infected person.
According to the details, an epidemic of red eye infection has broken out in Karachi, 70 to 80 cases of conjunctivitis are being reported daily in other public and private hospitals, including Jinnah Hospital and Civil Hospital, and a large number of citizens of Karachi are suffering from red eye infection. have happened, including children in large numbers.
Patients are coming to hospitals with complaints of irritation, inflammation, itching, redness, watery and pus discharge in the eyes, medical experts are advising patients that hygienic conjunctivitis transfer and spread. can greatly reduce the risk of
Citizens should wash their hands with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds and use hand sanitizer. Clean and wash the substance around the eyes several times a day.
Discard the clean tissue after use and wash the used cloth. Use a separate eye drop bottle for your affected eyes. Do not allow anyone in the household to reuse used eye drops. , and wash towels with hot water and soap, do not share pillows, washcloths, towels, eye drops, eye or face makeup, and personal items.
Medical experts added that due to lack of awareness about red eye, a large section of the population believes that the eye infection is spread by looking into the eyes of an infected person. Its purpose is only to protect the patient’s eye from strong light, if hygiene is taken care of, its spread can be controlled.
In a situation where the cases of conjunctivitis are increasing day by day, many eye drops have disappeared from the wholesale drug markets and medical stores in the city, while the prices of other drugs and eye drops have increased dramatically.
According to vendors of wholesale markets, the prices of various eye drops have increased by 20% in the last 15 days, and other eye drops including polypap, gentasin, betanasol fluorometholone and aflacin have disappeared from medical stores and wholesale drug markets in the city. According to the sources, the price of Betanasol was Rs 60, Fluormetholone was Rs 55, Aflacin was Rs 40, while Octachloride is now being sold at Rs 50 instead of Rs 36. Now some profiteers are charging them arbitrary prices.
SM Rais, a shopkeeper of the wholesale market of medicine, said that since the last one month when the cases of conjunctivitis have increased, there has been a shortage of eye drops from different companies. Before this, there was no crisis of eye drops. Eye drops which were easily available for 25 to 30 rupees, now citizens have to pay double for them.
If pharmaceutical companies keep backups and make it possible to supply medicines to medical stores and wholesale markets, the situation is expected to improve. Most of the eye drops are manufactured in Pakistan.
Due to the high dollar and high cost of raw materials, pharmaceutical companies have increased the prices of eye drops, but some profiteers are involved in hoarding and black marketing of eye drops. It is understandable, but the 20% increase in the prices of eye drops in the last 15 days is not correct, while some local companies, including Jestra, Betasol, Betametasol, are selling a few eye drops with a difference of two or three rupees.
Chairman Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (PPMA) Farooq Bukhari confirmed that with the approval of the Drugs Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP), the prices of eye drops have been increased by 20%, due to the shortage of eye drops in the city. There are main reasons.
The first is that the cost of many products has increased while the price increase is not approved due to which the pharmaceutical companies are losing and they are reducing the production of such products and the second reason is that the eye drops Due to the increase in demand, the crisis is rising in the city.
The citizens complained that the government of Pakistan, Drape and all the concerned officials should provide relief in the prices of eye drops due to the epidemic of conjunctivitis. Make treatment and medicine cheaper, it is a tragedy when a disease breaks out in Pakistan, the market of profiteers becomes active, everyone tries to make money by playing on people’s fear and no action is taken. Drug inspectors are requested to take action against hoarding and black marketing to provide relief to the public.
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