Subaita Tasnim Zara, a resident of Barguna near Barisal, was diagnosed with subacute sclerosing panencephalitis which affects children and young adults.
A seven-year-old girl in Bangladesh, diagnosed with a rare neurological disorder, received life-saving medicine from India thanks to the collaborative efforts of amateur radio operators from both countries.
The drug, currently unavailable in Bangladesh, reached the young girl on the night of Friday, November 24, reports the Times of India.
Subaita Tasnim Zara, a resident of Barguna near Barisal, was diagnosed with subacute sclerosing panencephalitis which affects children and young adults.
The disease, a deadly brain disorder, is linked to measles.
Although the measles virus does not normally cause brain damage, an abnormal immune response to measles can cause serious illness or even death.
Doctors at Dhaka Medical College and Hospital tried a particular antiviral drug, which is a combination of inosine, acetamidobenzoic acid and dimethylaminoisopropanol.
“We admitted her to the medical college ten days ago. She was shivering and had a very high fever. Doctors had tried several medications, but she reacted to one in particular,” said Md Jasimuddin, the father of Zara.
“Unfortunately, the hospital did not have sufficient stock of medicines. None of the dealers from Bangladesh had the medicines with them,” he added.
Meanwhile, doctors told the family to get the medicine as quickly as possible.
“We then contacted Rahat Khan, an amateur radio operator and engineer. He activated his network in neighboring countries, including India,” Jasim explained.
Amateur radio operators in West Bengal learned about this drug two days ago.
“Our members in every state started reporting the non-availability of this particular brand. But we managed to get an alternative to the Kerala brand, but the Bangladeshi doctor did not know how the child would react to this,” said Ambarish Nag. Biswas, founder of the West Bengal Radio Club.
Operators from across India then found a distributor in New Delhi who had the brand in question.
“Radio operators in India got hold of a Bangladeshi national who was returning from New Delhi. They handed over the medicines to him, which reached us on Friday evening,” Jasim added.
