Karachi: At least 35 people have died of rabies in Sindh during the first nine months of 2026, while more than 40,000 dog-bite cases were reported at four major public hospitals in Karachi over the same period, underscoring the mounting public-health challenge from a growing stray-dog population.
The number of dog-bite cases reported across Sindh during the year has exceeded 200,000, according to available health-sector data, although experts say the actual burden may be considerably higher because reporting and record-keeping systems are not uniform.
Data compiled from major hospitals in Karachi showed that Indus Hospital Karachi recorded around 14,000 dog-bite cases between January and September 2026. During the same period, Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) and Dr Ruth K. M. Pfau Civil Hospital Karachi each reported approximately 10,000 cases, while other hospitals across the city recorded more than 7,000 dog-bite cases.
The four hospitals therefore received over 40,000 dog-bite victims in nine months, but the figures cannot be treated as a complete estimate of the city’s dog-bite burden because patients also seek treatment at other public and private facilities.
Hospital records showed that 26 people died of rabies at Indus Hospital Karachi during the period, while one death was reported at Indus Hospital Badin and eight at Jinnah Hospital Karachi.
Rabies is a viral disease transmitted mainly through the bite or scratch of an infected animal, most commonly a dog. Health experts say it is almost always fatal once symptoms develop, but can be prevented if victims receive proper wound care and post-exposure treatment without delay.
The latest figures have renewed concern ahead of World Rabies Day, observed annually on September 28, as public-health specialists called for rabies prevention to be treated as a coordinated health, veterinary and municipal priority rather than a hospital-based response alone.
Pakistan’s reported dog-bite burden is already substantial. In 2025, Sindh, Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa collectively reported more than 615,663 dog-bite cases, according to available provincial data.
Sindh recorded more than 285,000 cases during the year, followed by Punjab with 243,299 cases and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with 87,364 cases.
Experts cautioned that the three-province figure was not a definitive national estimate, as complete data from other regions was unavailable and a considerable number of cases may go unreported. Surveillance systems, reporting formats and record-maintenance practices also vary widely between provinces, districts and health facilities.
They said a meaningful rabies-control strategy should not be confined to reducing stray-dog numbers or maintaining stocks of anti-rabies vaccine at selected hospitals.
Every dog-bite incident, they said, should be reported, assessed promptly by trained health staff and properly documented. Victims need immediate treatment, vaccination according to medical advice, rabies immunoglobulin in severe exposures where indicated, and follow-up to ensure completion of the full post-exposure prophylaxis course.
Experts also stressed the need to tackle factors contributing to dog bites, including unregulated dog populations, poor solid-waste management, unsafe public spaces and weak coordination among civic and veterinary bodies.
They said dog-population control measures, including sterilisation and vaccination programmes, had not advanced at the scale needed in Sindh. Health authorities, local governments, veterinary departments and municipal agencies must jointly develop a sustained strategy to reduce exposure to stray dogs and prevent deaths from rabies.
Doctors advised anyone bitten or scratched by a dog to wash the wound immediately with soap and running water for at least 15 minutes, avoid home remedies and reach the nearest health facility without delay.
They said timely anti-rabies vaccination and, where required, rabies immunoglobulin can save lives, but delays or failure to complete treatment can prove fatal once rabies symptoms emerge.