Public warned of possible dengue epidemic
PPO ALERT
LINGAYEN—With the onset of the rainy season, the Provincial Health Office (PHO) is already on full alert to guard against a possible dengue fever epidemic.
“Naka-alerto na kami ngayon pa lang, kahit hindi pa tayo nasa panahon ng tag-ulan talaga,” Provincial health officer, Dr. Anna De Guzman said.
De Guzman said the PHO was alarmed by two deaths due to dengue recorded last April and May in the towns of Agno and Villasis.
Aside from the two recorded deaths, the number of cases also increased by 17% for the same comparative period in 2014, (from 443 to 520) as of June 8, 2015.
Victims’ ages ranged from below one to 94 years old and most commonly affected were five to nine years olds, accounting for 102 cases or 20% of the total number of cases. Majority of cases affected males, or 305 or 59% of the total cases.
In comparison, no death caused by dengue was recorded last year, and the number of cases even dropped by 70% from the previous year.
“Pag mababa ‘yong kaso, nawawala sa priority ang dengue,” the health officer said, noting people tend to become complacent.
People forget to practice the “4 o’clock habit”, with its “stop, look, and listen” approach.
‘Stop’ is for dropping everything and focusing on mosquito control; ‘look’ is looking for possible dengue-carrying mosquitos’ breeding sites, and ‘listen’ is listening to instructions from authorities in regard to dengue.
The PPO has began coordinating with municipal sanitary inspectors to check on school premises.
The municipalities under current PHO watch list on dengue are San Quintin, Manaoag, Mangatarem, Natividad, San Carlos City, Balungao, San Nicolas, Umingan, Bani, San Fabian, and Anda. (Johanne Macob)
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