DOH campaigns vs dengue

The Department of Health (DOH) urged school officials yesterday to wage their own war against dengue by conducting massive cleanups of school premises at least once a week.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said the cleanup drive should focus on eliminating possible breeding sites of mosquitoes to control the spread of the dengue virus.

"School officials should pay attention to the removal of non-essential containers in their surroundings that can hold water and become breeding places of the mosquitoes that carry dengue," he said.

Dengue is transmitted by the day-biting Aedes aegypti mosquito, which has distinct stripes on its legs.

The DOH has recorded 12,308 dengue cases from Jan. 1 to Aug. 3 this year, 15 percent higher than last year’s 10,690 cases registered during the same period.

Dr. Vito Roque Jr., who heads the surveillance unit of the DOH’s National Epidemiology Center, said it is important to conduct the cleanup drives because 43 percent or 5,355 of the cases afflict children aged between one and nine years old.

"Aedes are day-biting mosquitoes. And since most children are in school during the day, we encourage school officials to make sure that they get rid of the possible breeding sites of such mosquitoes in their schools," he said.

There was a recent upsurge in the number of dengue cases at a public school in Barangay Pag-asa, Quezon City, which reported 42 cases from May 1 to July 31 alone.

Roque said containers capable of holding even small amounts of water should be eliminated to prevent a dengue outbreak in schools.

"Even the water in flower vases should be replaced every seven days because mosquitoes can breed there," he said, noting it takes seven days for mosquito larvae to become adults.

The DOH has observed the clustering of dengue cases in certain areas in Bukidnon, Cagayan de Oro, Quezon province, Nueva Ecija, Bulacan, Malabon City, and in Tondo, Manila.

Roque said the DOH has already coordinated with local authorities and epidemiologists in these areas to ensure that they execute measures to prevent the spread of the disease.