Dextra plasma expander to all hospitals:

Dengue patients get more care

Nadira GUNATILLEKE

Dextra, plasma expander - intravenous injection that expands plasma in dengue patients will be provided to all tertiary care hospitals in Sri Lanka immediately to save lives of dengue patients. It will be obtained from Thailand, a Health Ministry spokesman said.

According to the spokesman the WHO will provide them free responding to a request made by Health Minister Maithripala Sirisena. Intravenous injection are used in Sri Lanka as a plasma expander for dengue patients. The new injections will be imported in addition to that.

They will help to minimize dengue deaths. It will be used for all dengue patients who are in the risk category with the possibility of developing Dengue Shock Syndrome and Dengue Hemorrhage Fever.

Minister Sirisena has also instructed the authorities to strengthen drug quality control process. Quality control of all drugs is done scientifically, biologically and micro-biologically by the National Drug Quality Assurance Laboratory.

The quality assurance of all drugs is done by this laboratory before issuing them to the public. Around 800 drugs are tested annually for quality.