The planet's most densely populated region has its fewest reported cases of the virus. But virologists fear the reality might be far more grim. The world's most densely populated region, South Asia is home to a quarter of the planet's people, yet has so far reported just 169 cases, or fewer than one in every thousand of the total 156,000 patients globally. As of late Saturday, India had reported 102 cases, Pakistan 31, Afghanistan 11, Maldives 10, Sri Lanka 10, Bangladesh 3 and one each in Bhutan and Nepal. Two people — both in India — have died. But growing evidence suggests that the virus is far more widespread in the region, sparking concerns among leading public health experts and virologists that South Asia might be a time bomb waiting to explode. The region’s countries have focused their prevention strategy on scrutiny of incoming travelers at their international airports. India, for instance, said in early March it had screened 650,000 arriving passengers over the previous five weeks. But it was watching the vast majority for visible symptoms, and fewer than 1 percent actually underwent tests. And several cases appear to have slipped past, coming to notice only later, after they had been in contact with dozens of people. |