By Pamela
Mariz Geminiano
BAGUIO CITY-- Dengue
cases in the Cordillera Region recorded from January 1 to Oct. 6 this year rose
to 5,921 cases, which is 97 percent higher than the 2,999 cases during the same
period last year, the Dept. of Health Cordillera reported last week.
The DOH Cordillera also
reported a 31 percent hike in leptospirosis cases during the period
Geeny Austria, a nurse
at the Regional Epidemiology Surveillance Unit (RESU) of the Department of
Health-Cordillera, said based on collated reports from disease reporting units
in provinces comprising the region, there were 11 deaths due to dengue this
year compared with nine last year .
Kalinga province
recorded the most cases of dengue with 1,139; followed by Benguet with 1,025
cases; Apayao, 887; Abra, 829; Ifugao, 568; Baguio City, 418 cases; and
Mountain Province with 224 cases.
She added that out of
the total number of cases, 831 came from other provinces outside of the
Cordillera who sought medical treatment in hospitals in the region.
Austria said that 3,161
of the recorded patients were males with ages ranging from four days to 96
years old.
On leptospirosis, there
were 61 cases in 2017 which increased to 80 cases in 2018, or a 31 percent
hike.
There was one
death due to leptospirosis in 2017 and five deaths in 2018.
Austria said that
leptospirosis cases had an increasing trend, which was caused by the leptospira
bacteria carried by rats and other four-legged animals like livestock and dogs.
The Leptospira bacteria,
she explained, is most commonly spread via water contaminated with the urine of
infected animals, but contaminated food or soil can also act as vehicles for
transmission of the disease.
According to DRUs,
Benguet had 14 leptospirosis cases; Apayao and Baguio City with 10 cases each;
Kalinga has seven cases; Ifugao has four cases; and Abra and Mountain Province
with 2 cases each.
Austria said
leptospirosis is a preventable disease.
She urged the public,
especially parents to prevent their children from swimming or wading in
potentially contaminated water. -- PNA
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