More dengue cases meet rainy June

TAGBILARAN CITY, Philippines — The latest count of dengue cases recorded in Bohol already reached 83, eight of them were just added last week during the onset of the rainy month of June.

The eight dengue patients, in the first nine days this month, were all minors, the oldest of whom was a 17-year-old boy from Trinidad town and the youngest was a 6-year-old boy from Panglao town. All of them were confined at the Governor Celestino Gallares Memorial Hospital in this city.

Provincial Health Officer Reymoses Cabagnot, in his latest public announcement, said dengue cases from January to April 14 already reached 69 and in the middle of May, six more children were rushed to Gallares Hospital.

Four of them died, he said, adding that two of the fatalities were from Pangangan island of Calape town and the other two from Antequera town and this city.

According to Cabagnot, the highest number of dengue cases in the past five years in Bohol was 2,647 recorded in 2010. It went down to only 147 in 2011.

It is now feared to increase this year, not necessarily because of the increase in the count but of the awareness of the parents to immediately seek medical attention for their children who catch fever for two days. It is expected that more dengue cases will be recorded now, said Cabagnot.

The PHO is still awaiting the results of the recent survey conducted by a team from the Regional Epidemiology Surveillance Unit (RESU) of the Department of Health-Region 7, led by Regional Epidemiologist Reynan Cimafranca.

The PHO and the RESU teams already checked Pangangan island where two deaths from dengue were recorded, he said. — (FREEMAN)