The Zamboanga City Health Office. (PNA file photo)
ZAMBOANGA CITY – The public is warned anew against leptospirosis, a fever-causing illness associated with the wet season and flooding.
The City Health Office issued the warning Tuesday amid flooding affecting 10 villages here due to heavy downpours caused by the shear line, the convergence of northeasterly and easterly winds that forms rain clouds.
Leptospirosis is caused by the Leptospira spirochetes bacteria that is spread through rat urine.
“Its mode of transmission includes wading in contaminated floodwaters and ingesting contaminated food or water,” said Dr. Dulce Amor Miravite, city health officer, on Tuesday.
Miravite advised residents who have been exposed to floodwaters to visit health centers and avail of prophylaxis for the prevention of the disease.
She also advised them, especially those who developed a fever after wading in floodwaters, to seek early consultation.
Cases of leptospirosis in this city remained at 141 with 26 deaths since January this year.
Most of the infected individuals are aged between 20 and 29, while 120 or 86 percent of the 141 cases are males.
The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration said moderate to at times heavy rains are expected over the Zamboanga Peninsula, Northern Mindanao, Caraga, Palawan, and Bohol in the next 24 hours due to the shear line. (PNA)
