More dengue cases expected on threat of heavy rains

More dengue cases are expected due to the threat of heavy rains prompting Health Secretary Manuel Dayrit to reactivate clean-up drives in barangays nationwide to prevent an increase in the number of patients and deaths. The health chief’s call to renew the "4 o’clock cleanliness habit" came as more rains are expected due to the ongoing wet season.

The cleanliness campaign was so-named as the Aedes Aegypti- the dengue fever-causing mosquito- increases its biting activity between 4 to 6 a.m. or two hours after sunrise and from 4 to 6 p.m. or two hours before sunset.

Dayrit said elimination of breeding places of the mosquito is still the best preventive action against the spread of the potential deadly disease. "Barangays should conduct a house-to-house cleanliness drive to deprive the mosquito vector of breeding places," he said.

Rain water collected in containers like empty softdrink bottles, unused tires and even wet paper are all ideal breeding places for Aedes Aegypti. This mosquito species also breeds in natural habitats such as in the leaf axils and trunks of plants like bromeliads, bananas and gabi leaves.

Dengue cases were reported in Ilocos Norte and Sur, Pangasinan, Cordillera Region, Pampanga, Bulacan, Davao and Agusan del Norte.

From January to June, there were 4,026 dengue cases reported nationwide. According to DOH figures, the number is 61 percent higher compared to the cases for the same period last year. — Pamela Samia