Dengue-carrying mosquito (PNA file photo)
DUMAGUETE CITY – The number of dengue cases in Negros Oriental that covers the first seven months of this year has surpassed the total number of dengue cases in the same period last year, a health official said Wednesday.
Assistant Provincial Health Officer Dr. Liland Estacion, in an interview with the Philippine News Agency, said the latest weekly morbidity report on August 6 showed a total of 1,139 cases and six deaths from the start of the year compared to the 430 cases and no deaths during the same period in 2021.
The total so far this year is 165 percent higher than last year’s figures, Estacion also said in mixed English and Cebuano.
“This is kind of alarming already as we expect the cases to continue to rise in the coming weeks and months,” she said.
She noted that it is just past the middle of the year, but the cases have more than doubled compared to the total cases for the whole of last year, logged at only 644.
“The increase in dengue cases is expected because of the rainy season, as well as this year, being the outbreak or epidemic year in a three-year cycle,” Estacion said.
Canlaon City still topped the list with the highest number of cases at 239, followed by Bayawan City, 127; Dumaguete City, 119; Guihulngan City, 95; Bais City, 61; and Sta. Catalina, 57 cases.
The rest had 55 or fewer infections, Estacion said.
Fogging or misting continues in the different local government units, especially in areas with high dengue incidence, she added. (PNA)
