DOH: El Niño no assurance of fewer dengue cases

MANILA, Philippines - While the El Niño phenomenon is expected to hit the country next month, this is not an assurance that there will be fewer dengue cases this year, the Department of Health (DOH) said yesterday.

DOH spokesman Lyndon Lee Suy said the public should eliminate all possible breeding sites of mosquitoes and strictly observe this measure even during El Niño.

Dengue is spread by the bite of female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes which breed in clean but stagnant water.

“When there is drought or during dry season, we have the tendency to store water in our homes. We should know that keeping water in containers that are not covered could also lead to dengue outbreaks,” Lee Suy explained.

The public, he added, must keep their guard up against dengue because it is now considered “an all year-round disease.”

Records of the DOH’s National Epidemiology Center showed that there were 23,867 dengue cases from Jan. 1 to May 31, 2014. This is 50.98 percent lower compared to the 48,686 cases registered during the same period in 2013.

Central Luzon accounted for most cases at 10.21 percent, followed by Calabarzon at 10.14 percent, Eastern Visayas at 9.93 percent, SoCCSKSarGen at 9.48 percent and the National Capitol Region at 8.55 percent. There were 99 deaths.

“While we see a decline in dengue cases, we don’t see any reason why we should be complacent. Now that it’s rainy season, we could see dengue cases coming in. Not unless we do our share of responsibility,” Lee Suy said.

He also cautioned that the trend could easily be reversed when the public becomes complacent about the mosquito-borne disease.