Suspected measles outbreak in Sarangani now ‘under control’

GENERAL SANTOS CITY – The suspected measles outbreak that has killed at least 21 children in an upland community in Malapatan town, Sarangani Province is now under control, a local health official said on Thursday.

Dr. Arvin Alejandro, chief of the Sarangani Provincial Health Office (PHO), said the spread of the disease has slowed down based on their latest monitoring in 11 affected sitios of Barangay Upper Suyan, Malapatan.

"There is not much increase in cases so far and our field personnel are continually working on totally containing it," he said in a radio interview.

Since the outbreak was first reported in the first week of November, a total of 109 suspected measles cases have been validated in the area by the PHO's epidemiology and surveillance unit (PESU).

The affected areas were sitios Lower Kyugam, Alna, Mahayag, Upper Kyugam, Lino, Alnaob, Datalnay, Dlandang, Akbual, Mission and Klarak.

The latest fatality was a threeyear-old boy, who succumbed to severe complications caused by suspected measles at a hospital here.

Most of the patients were aged 15 years old and below, with 60 percent within the one to five-years old range.

PHO is still awaiting the results of the confirmatory tests on the samples it earlier sent to the Department of Health's Research Institute for Tropical Medicine in Muntinlupa City.

As of Thursday, Alejandro said at least 15 patients are still confined at the R.O. Diagan Hospital here, the designated treatment and isolation facility for affected residents.

He said the massive vaccination activities are ongoing in the affected sitios and their neighboring communities.

The vaccination drive already covered around 2,000 children or 80 percent of their target, he said.

Alejandro said the municipal health offices of nearby Alabel and Glan town have also launched massive measles vaccination campaigns to prevent the possible emergence of the disease in their areas. (PNA)