Dengue cases in Baguio City up five folds, Phillipines

BAGUIO CITY, July 19 – The Department of Health – Cordillera Regional Office (DOH-CAR) reported that seven people died due to dengue fever in the region for the first semester this year compared with the three dengue-related deaths recorded during the same period last year.

DOH-CAR Director Lakshmi Legaspi, on Tuesday, said 2,0532 dengue cases have been recorded in the region from January to June this year compared with the 1,454 cases reported during the same period last year, or a 74 percent increase.

“Seven deaths were recorded in the region including a 53-year old male from Pilar, Abra, a 3-year old female, and a 5-year old female from Tabuk City, Kalinga, a 33-year old male from Tuba, Benguet, a 46-year old male from Tinoc, Ifugao, a 7-month old male from Bucay, Abra and a 19-year old female from La Trinidad, Benguet,” Legaspi said.

Baguio City recorded 768 cases for the first semester this year, a 5-fold increase from 137 cases during the same period last year; Benguet registered 1,107, a 3-fold increase from 260 cases; and Ifugao, 60 cases or 51-percent hike from 41 cases last year.

Abra recorded 91 cases, down 61 percent from 235 cases last year; Mountain Province with 45 cases or 60 percent lower than the 112 cases recorded last year; Kalinga with with 208 cases compared to 292 cases last year; and Apayao with 146 cases this year, a 2-percent decrease from 157 cases last year.

Non-CAR areas showed a 13-percent decrease with 105 cases this year compared to 120 cases last year.

In Baguio City, clustering of cases were reported in Barangays Bakakeng Central, Balsigan, Brookside, Camp 7, Camp 8, City Camp Central, Engineer’s Hill, Fairview, Happy Homes, Irisan, Kayang Extension, Kias, Loakan Proper, Lopez Jaena, Military Cut-off, Pinget, Quezon Hill Proper, Upper Quezon Hill, East Quirino Hill, North Sanitary Camp, South Sanitary Camp, and Victoria Village.

The Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center reported that all beds intended for dengue cases are now occupied, resulting in non-admittance of several cases which hospital authorities said were requested to visit the hospital on a scheduled basis.

Dengue fever and the more severe form, dengue hemorrhagic fever, is caused by any of the four types of dengue virus type 1, 2, 3 and 4 transmitted by an infected day-biting female aedes mosquito.