DENGUE CASES SHOOT UP IN SOUTHERN LEYTE TOWN, KIDAPAWAN CITY

The municipal government of Saint Bernard in Southern Leyte province has declared a dengue outbreak as cases of the mosquito-borne disease increased significantly.

Based on the town’s data, at least 207 cases of dengue fever were recorded from Jan. 1 to June 17. The number was up by more than 370 percent compared to the 55 cases in the town recorded from Jan. 1 to Dec. 30, 2021.

Patrick Magallano, municipal sanitation inspector, said the municipal council placed the town under a state of calamity as early as May 31 due to the increasing number of dengue cases.

“So far, this has been the highest number of dengue fever [cases] in Saint Bernard for the past five years. We are just happy that despite the high cases of dengue, we have zero mortality,” he said.

Magallano said authorities had intensified their campaign against the further spread of dengue fever while the town is under a state of calamity.

Of Saint Bernard’s 30 barangays, only four have no reported cases of dengue fever, he said. These are Libas, Mahayag, Tabon-Tabon and Nueva Esperanza.

Barangay Himatagon has the highest number of dengue cases with 20 followed by Magbagacay (18), Catmon (17) and Guinsaugon (14).

“We have intensified our campaign by destroying all breeding places of mosquitoes to contain the spread of the disease,” Magallano said.

The health office is also doing fogging operations in areas that reported a high number of cases.

Magallano attributed the dengue outbreak in Saint Bernard to Typhoon “Odette” (international name: Rai), which hit the Visayas and parts of Mindanao in December last year.

The regional office of the Department of Health (DOH) earlier issued a warning that among the possible diseases that might arise in the typhoon-hit areas, especially those that were flooded, was dengue fever.

The DOH, last week, reported that Eastern Visayas region logged at least 1,568 dengue fever cases with six deaths.

Of these, 500 cases were from Southern Leyte, including Saint Bernard.

Poor hygiene

In Kidapawan City, health officials blamed poor hygiene practices for the rapid increase in dengue cases in 40 villages in the city.

Jasna Sucol, dengue prevention coordinator of the City Health Office, said at least 326 dengue cases were recorded in the city from January to June 22, with two deaths among infected children.

Sucol said only 20 dengue cases were reported during the same period last year.

Most of the infections were reported from the highly urbanized villages of Balindog, Lanao, Amas, Poblacion and Sudapin.

“The number of cases might increase as we are still consolidating reports from our barangay health workers,” she said, adding that they were waiting for the monitoring report from private hospitals for June 13 to June 18.

Sucol advised residents in affected villages to wear longsleeved shorts and pants, especially during afternoons, to protect them from mosquito bites.

“That is the least we can do. But still, cleanliness in our surroundings is necessary to get rid of the mosquitoes,” she said.

Sucol also instructed residents to immediately consult a doctor or visit the nearest health center if they have fever.

“We provided each barangay health station with dengue kits for possible determination whether the symptom manifested in the patient is related to dengue,” Sucol said.

Sucol said fogging operations were already conducted in the five urban villages where the city’s dengue cases are concentrated.