Dengue update today.
Manila – The DOH reported 70,204 dengue cases for week ending September 10, 2011. This was over 24,000 cases less or 25.87% lower than for the same period last year. In addition, the number of cases in July and August (the peak months for dengue) was 52% lower than last year. A total of 396 deaths were reported for this year, which is lower than last year’s number of 620.
Most of the cases came from the National Capital Region (15,427) Central Luzon (13,347), and CALABARZON (10,215). At the National Capital Region, most cases are from Quezon City (4,611), Manila City (1,944), Kalookan City (1,941), Valenzuela (1,090), and Pasig (838).
Ages of cases ranged from less than a month to 92 years old. Majority (53%) of reported cases were male. Most (41%) belonged to the 1-10 years age group.
“The marked reduction in cases can be attributed to the concerted efforts of all stakeholders, especially local governments, who disseminated timely information to residents and spearheaded clean-up drives in their communities,” Assistant Health Secretary Enrique Tayag explained.
However, Tayag warned the public not to be complacent as dengue is an all-year round public health threat.
The health official noted that dengue is a preventable disease. He urged the public to continue maintaining clean surroundings by ensuring that all possible mosquito breeding sites are destroyed or discarded. Some of the common breeding sites of the Aedes Aegypti are empty softdrink bottles, bamboo husks, old tires, and flower vases.
To prevent complications and deaths, Tayag advised all suspect dengue cases to seek immediate medical consultation for proper case management. Some of the disease’s signs and symptoms are high continuous fever lasting for 2-7 days, nausea/vomiting, abdominal pain, body weakness, bleeding from nose and gums, and persistent red spots on the face, extremities and trunks.
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