DOH team in Davao City to probe malaria cases

The Department of Health has sent a team to Davao City to look into incidents of malaria that have killed at least two residents and downed 60 others there. Radio dzBB reported Wednesday that the DOH National Center for Disease Prevention and Control instructed the team to coordinate with local health authorities in the area. At least 60 residents in Gumitan village in Davao City had been downed with malaria, while at least two — a child and a schoolteacher — have died. The World Health Organization said malaria is caused by a parasite called Plasmodium, which is transmitted via the bites of infected mosquitoes. In the human body, the parasites multiply in the liver, and then infect red blood cells. Symptoms of malaria include fever, headache, and vomiting, and usually appear between 10 and 15 days after the mosquito bite, it added. A report over GMA News on Tuesday said local authorities have started distributing mosquito nets to the village residents for protection against mosquito bites.

But the dzBB report on Wednesday said health authorities are not yet considering the incident an outbreak, adding it is still "contained" within the village. It added residents are now afraid they may get the disease because they have so far been given only paracetamol. The DOH said it has also asked its Davao office to send slides and blood samples of affected residents. — RSJ/LBG, GMANews.TV