DENGUE DEATHS. Sibalom sanitary inspector Primrose Villegas checks a water container for mosquito larvae. The Integrated Provincial Health Office of Antique said four deaths have been reported in the province due to dengue from January to August this year. (Photo courtesy of IPHO Antique)
SAN JOSE DE BUENAVISTA, Antique – Three more deaths due to dengue were reported in the province last August, a health official said on Wednesday.
“The three deaths are in the municipalities of Pandan, Caluya and in Bugasong,” said Integrated Provincial Health Office (IPHO) Infectious Disease Cluster head Sheree Vego in an interview.
She said the data is alarming because the deaths were reported in just a month.
The fatality from Pandan town was a one-year-old baby girl.
“With the additional reported deaths, the province of Antique has now a total of four deaths. The death of a three-year-old child from Tobias Fornier was in February,” Vego said.
She also said despite the four deaths, dengue cases from January 1 to August 22, 2020 were drastically reduced compared to the statistics during the same period in 2019.
“Since January 1 to August 22 this year, we only had 322 live cases,” she said.
For the same period last year, Antique recorded 2,011 total cases, with 10 deaths.
Due to the reported deaths last month, the IPHO is advocating to the public the practice of the 4S strategy against dengue, Vego said.
“Let us be reminded of the 4S that stands for Search and destroy the mosquito breeding places, Self-Protection by wearing light colored long shirts and pants, Seek early consultation whenever a person suspects of having dengue, and Support fogging/spraying in hotspot areas,” she said.
An area is considered to be a hotspot when there is an increase in dengue cases for two consecutive weeks. (PNA)
