City Dengue cases plunge with same pattern as last year
From the more than 120 recorded cases, the number of Dengue cases plunged down on morbidity week 39 (Sept. 27 to Oct. 3), with 19 new cases.
From Jan. 1 to Oct. 3, 2022, there were 2,895 cases with four deaths; while in the same period last year, there were 1,034 cases with eight deaths.
This was reported by City Health Services Office head Dr. Rowena Galpo during an online management committee meeting Tuesday Morning.
There are more cases this year than in 2021 but the pattern is the same with fluctuations and on a downward trend as shown in a graph, which according to Dr. Galpo is cyclical or seasonal for Dengue cases.
There are now 43 barangays having the dreaded mosquito-borne illness, down from 73, 62 and 52 barangays with clustered cases several weeks ago.
The highest number of cases now in a barangay is 40, followed by 17 and 16 cases, down to three (3) cases in eight barangays, as compared to more than 40 or 50 cases in recent weeks.
As to the number of tires collected there are 1,133 from 57 barangays, with no collections done for the past weeks. Tires which are deemed mosquito egg-nurturing venues are collected and either destroyed or used in livelihood projects.
The downtrend is accredited to good leadership, monitoring and aggressive clean-ups such as Denguerra where residents and the local government unit co-operated on sanitation targets. Oplan Taob was also done, where receptacles and rain-water collecting containers are overturned, to prevent mosquito eggs from developing, hatching and multiplying.
The improved reporting of cases from private laboratories is also recognized, Dr. Galpo said. Data from both public and private sectors make the information valid and well-founded, City Epidemiology Surveillance Unit (CESU) head Dr. Donna Tubera-Panes concurred.
Dr. Galpo however cautioned Baguio residents not to be complacent despite the downturn of cases. Persons with symptoms such as fever, rashes, headache, body pains, swollen glands, nausea, vomiting should go immediately to the nearest medical facility for check-up, she said. – JGF
