Dengue cases in Aklan up, says PHO

BY BOY RYAN B. ZABAL

KALIBO, Aklan - The number of dengue patients in Aklan rose to 370 from January to the first week of August this year, the Provincial Health Office (PHO) said.

PHO II Dr. Emma Cortes said that most of the cases came from Kalibo with 93, Numancia with 48 followed by New Washington with 31 cases, Banga and Batan with 20 cases each.

"The figures are quite alarming caused by dengue-carrying mosquitoes. PHO is calling the public to practice 4 S to destroy all breeding sites of day-biting mosquitoes, especially during rainy days," she said in a press conference at the Provincial Governor's Office.

Chief of Hospital II Dr. Paul Macahilas said at least 16 patients seeking treatment for dengue fever were isolated at the Dr. Rafael S. Tumbokon Memorial Hospital. The provincial hospital converted its conference hall into a facility to treat and accommodate the growing number dengue patients, he added.

Cortes said the number of cases rose to 370 from 292 for the period January to July this year after private hospitals such as Saint Gabriel Hospital submitted its report of dengue cases to PHO.

Kalibo, for instance, had 57 confirmed cases of dengue last year compared to 93 cases for January to the first week of August this year alone while the northernmost town of Buruanga has no dengue cases registered for the past two years.

Cortes also reported that of the six provinces in Western Visayas, the province of Aklan has the second lowest cases of dengue this year. She reiterated the 4S campaign, which stands for search and destroy, self-protection measures, seek early consultation and say no to indiscriminate fogging.

Aedes aegypti mosquitoes caused the acute infectious disease manifested initially with fever. Symptoms include sudden onset of high fever which may last 2 to 7 days, joint & muscle pain and pain behind the eyes, weakness, skin rashes called petechiae, nosebleeding when fever starts to subside, abdominal pain, vomiting of coffee-colored matter and dark-colored stools.

Meanwhile, the Aklan Medical Society has urged the public to get rid of mosquito breeding places due to high incidence of dengue cases in Aklan.