Dengue cases up by 30% from last year

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Health (DOH) blamed excessive rain during the first two months of the year for an increase in the number of dengue cases. Based on the Disease Surveillance Report of the DOH, 9,555 dengue victims were admitted to hospitals nationwide from January to April 19 of this year. The figure is 29.4% higher compared with the 7,384 reported cases during the same period last year. "Compared with last year, the country had more rain this year, especially during its first two months. This caused the number of dengue victims to climb," DOH’s Lyndon Lee Suy said. Of the 9,555 victims, 111 died, an increase from last year’s 82 deaths. All the regions reported fewer than 10 deaths each except the National Capital Region (NCR) and Calabarzon, which had 17 and 11 deaths from dengue. Of the three regions, the Visayan provinces had the highest death toll with 43 patients reported to have died. The NCR had the most cases of dengue with 2,443 patients brought to the hospital. This was followed by Central Visayas and Central Luzon with 1,384 and 1,221 cases, respectively. The Ilocos Region registered 307 cases; Cagayan Valley, 240 cases; the Cordillera Administrative Region, 167 cases; Calabarzon, 881 cases; Mimaropa, 100 cases; and the Bicol Region, 117 cases. In the Visayas, Western Visayas had 353 cases while Eastern Visayan had 45. In Mindanao, the most number of cases were registered in the Zamboaga Peninsula (805 cases), followed by the Davao Region (655), Northern Mindanao (470). The fewest cases were reported in Soccsksargen (151), the Caraga Region (150) and the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (66). With the rainy season fast approaching, the DOH advises barangays to strictly follow the "Four O’Clock Habit" that promotes the practice of cleaning the surroundings and draining water containers that could be the breeding grounds of Aedes aegypti, the mosquito that carries the virus. The health department is also promoting its 4-S campaign: Searching and destroying possible breeding grounds of dengue-carrying mosquitoes; wearing long sleeved shirts and pants for protection; seeking health professionals for a fever that lasts two days or more; and saying no to indiscriminate fogging. — Kristine Jane Liu, BusinessWorld