2 children listed as PUIs die in Pangasinan

DAGUPAN CITY, Philippines – An eight-month-old baby girl and a three-year-old baby boy, both listed as patients under investigation (PUIs) in the cities of Dagupan and San Carlos, respectively, in Pangasinan, have died.

The baby girl, the eighth and the youngest PUI death recorded in Dagupan City, was admitted to a private hospital on April 14 and died a day later, according to a report from the Dagupan City Public Information Office.

She suffered from cough, fever and seizures.

A throat swab taken from her had been sent to a hospital accredited by the Department of Health (DOH) to do the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) test using the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test.

In San Carlos City, a three-year-old baby boy who was a PUI died on April 14.

The baby, from Barangay Meztizo Norte, was admitted to the Pangasinan Provincial Hospital with an initial diagnosis of pediatric community-acquired pneumonia and acute gastroenteritis.

The patient also suffered from congenital heart disease and Down Syndrome.

He had no history of travel outside their residence for the past 14 days.

Meanwhile, even with the enhanced community quarantine, the DOH has advised the public not to hesitate to go out of their homes if they need to s eek necessary medical services.

“Coordinate with your local government authorities in securing quarantine passes, which will allow you to visit health facilities for your needed services,” Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said.

Vergeire also warned all hospitals and other health facilities against refusing to admit people needing medical attention despite despite the challenges brought about by the COVID-19 outbreak.

^{Global fatality rate}

The country’s case fatality rate (CFR) for COVID-19 has surpassed the global average, the DOH said yesterday.

During the virtual meeting of the House Defeat COVID-19 committee, Health Undersecretary Lilibeth David told lawmakers that the Philippines has recorded 6.6 percent CFR as of Wednesday, 0.2 percent higher than the global average of 6.4 percent.

Italy’s CFR is 12.9 percent, Spain at 10.5 percent CFR and Indonesia with 9.4 percent CFR.

But a couple of hours later, the Philippine CFR went down to 6.4 percent after the DOH announced the latest figures of 362 deaths out of 5660 cumulative cases.

David said there are more than 1.9 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 globally as of April 15, and the Philippines contributed 0.28 percent of these cases and 0.28 percent in confirmed deaths. – With Mayen Jaymalin, Edu Punay, Ding Cervantes, Raymund Catindig