MindanaoToday.com | CdeO posts 870 cases of dengue
By: Uriel Quilinguing
Dengue virus has infected 870 persons and claimed five lives in Cagayan de Oro this year, breaching the city’s alert level threshold—the three-year average number of cases.
This prompted the City Health Office (CHO) to reiterate its public warning in an online discussion on Monday, August 19, urging villages and schools to intensity their anti-dengue measures.
Reagan Abbu, CHO health education promotion unit head, reminded village and school officials of the 5S strategies: Search and destroy breeding grounds, Seek early consultation, Self-protection, Support fogging if necessary, and Stay hydrated.
Abbu said they have turned over rolls of insecticide-treated screens (known as Olyset nets) to 12 public elementary schools where dengue infections have been detected. The CHO received 67 rolls of nets from the Department of Health 10.
Recipients of the nets with high number of dengue cases are Carmen (122), Patag (89), Balulang (71), Lumbia (57), Kauswagan (50), Canitoan (50), Bulua (48), Bugo (42), Macasandig (33), and Camaman-an (28). Schools in Indahag and Pagatpat also got a roll of the anti-mosquito screen each.
The CHO HEPO urged with two or more dengue symptoms to undergo non-structured protein (NS1) test (free in rural health units) which would yield either positive or negative for dengue.
Symptoms include recurring high fever (40 degrees Celsius), severe headache, pain behind the eyes, muscle and joint pains, nausea, vomiting, rashes, and swollen glands.
Dengue virus is transmitted through pricks of female Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquitoes. [Uriel Quilinguing]
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