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Seven die of dengue in North Cotabato


KIDAPAWAN CITY — Despite a massive information campaign against dengue fever, seven people have died of the disease in four towns in North Cotabato, officials said. Health authorities on Wednesday confirmed that dengue claimed the lives of seven people in four towns: Banisilan (four victims); Arakan, Pigcawayan and Libungan (one fatality each). Dr. Hansel Amoguis, chief of the Provincial Epidemiology Surveillance Unit (PESU) said 1,889 persons have been confined this year in public and private hospitals in North Cotabato after being diagnosed with dengue. Amoguis says this is very alarming because the figure already surpasses the total number of dengue cases (1,614) in the province in 2009. “In 2009, we only have two deaths but this year we are only in the month of July but we already recorded seven deaths due to dengue," Amoguis told GMANews.TV. Amoguis identified the areas where many dengue cases were reported this year: Kidapawan City, 389; Makilala, 227; Midsayap, 205; Banisilan, 152, and Mlang, 118. The PESU chief advised the municipal health officers in these towns to conduct an extensive anti-dengue campaign to prevent the spread of the disease. She also instructed local health authorities to teach the “Four o’ Clock Habit" of cleaning the surroundings to get rid of dengue-carrying mosquitoes. “Let us unite in combating this ailment. We must start in our respective community by making sure that our surroundings are clean and good hygiene is properly practice," Dr. Amoguis said. The Integrated Provincial Health Office (IPHO) North Cotabato already launched an anti-dengue information campaign in schools and communities. The IPHO also distributed leaflets and pamphlets on how to determine whether a person has dengue fever. Amoguis said the health office can only educate the people and it is up to the residents themselves to make sure “that their environment is clean to prevent the ailment to spread." –VVP, GMANews.TV

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