Local health authorities warned the public on the continuous surge in dengue fever cases in the different parts of the Cordillera following a 163 percent increase in the number of individuals contracting the dreaded illness for the first thirty one weeks of this year compared to the reported incidents during the same period last year.
From January 1 to August 3, 2024, Alexander P. Baday, an entomologist of the Cordillera Office of the Department of Health (DOH-CAR), said that there are already 9,892 recorded dengue fever cases in the region which is already 163 percent higher than the 4,978 cases during the same period last year.
Further, he noted that 4,978 or 51 percent of the cases are males while 49 percent of the cases are females.
The DOH-CAR entomologist said that 293 barangays in the different parts of the region have reported clustering of dengue fever cases during the period.
Baguio City posted the highest percentage increase with 347 percent or from 601 cases during the first 31 weeks of 2023 compared to the 2,688 cases for the same period this year; Mountain Province came in second with a 288 percent increase in dengue fever cases with 418 cases last year compared to the 1,539 cases during the same period this year; Benguet came in third with a 259 percent increase or from 1080 cases last year compared to the 3,874 cases this year; non-CAR provinces reported an increase of 225 percent increase from 140 cases last year to 455 cases this year; Kalinga recorded a 114 percent increase from 265 cases last year to 566 cases this year and Apayao registered a 77 percent increase or from 301 cases last year to 534 cases this year.
However, Ifugao posted a 41 percent decrease from 863 cases last year to 511 cases this year while Abra reported a 23 percent decrease in dengue fever cases or from 234 cases last year to 180 cases this year.
Baguio recorded the highest number of dengue-related deaths with 10 followed by Benguet with 5, Mountain Province and Apayao – 3 each and Abra – 1 while Ifugao and Kalinga did not register any deaths related to the dreaded illness.
Baday stipulated that the health department ordered the reactivation of dengue fast lanes in the different health facilities around the region to cater to the surge in dengue fever cases so that appropriate medical attention can be provided to individuals seeking early consultations for possible infection.
Health experts advised the public to immediately seek early consultations if they are experiencing two to three days of continuous fever so that appropriate medical attention could have provided them to avoid late stages of detection that might compromise their health condition.
Last year, the DOH-CAR recorded seven dengue-related deaths where Apayao had 3 fatalities, Abra, Baguio, Benguet and non-Car provinces – 1 death each, Ifugao, Kalinga and Mountain Province had no dengue-related deaths last year.
The Cordillera had been declared under White Code alert to ensure the close monitoring of dengue-related cases being brought to the different health facilities for them to be provided with the prescribed medical attention to spare them from experiencing difficult situations. By Dexter A. See
