Dengue outbreak hits town in Bohol

TAGBILARAN CITY, Philippines – Dengue outbreak now haunts Sagbayan town in Bohol where 98 cases were recorded over the last 45 days with one death on August 19, the fourth one this year.

Provincial Health officer Reymoses Cabagnot, confirmed that the Sagbayan Municipal Health Office had declared a dengue outbreak in the town considering that cases has continued to increase in number.

The latest dengue patient to die from dengue was a 34-year-old Allyn Bajo, a resident of Barangay San Antonio, Sagbayan, but Cabagnot said it was Barangay Poblacion that has the most number of dengue cases in this town, with 70 cases recorded.

Dengue surveillance team noted the spread of dengue from Poblacion to the adjacent barangays, said Cabagnot, adding that the situation has already reached an alarming level.

From 466, as of July 4, dengue cases increased to 585 by July 25 and to 800 to this day, Cabagnot said. Lack of blood supply added to the problem as some patients have to scout for blood donors on their own, he said.

Cabagnot said Governor Edgar Chatto already ordered aggressive campaign against dengue, considering the outbreak. However, the province has only three misting machines, the two of which are now being utilized for the ongoing misting operations in Sagbayan to stop the life cycle of mosquitoes.

Cabagnot also reminded the public to continue observing the Department of Health’s “4 S” campaign, which stands for Search and destroy (search and removal of mosquito eggs; Special protective equipment (the use of mosquito nets and insect repellants); Seek early medical consultation (in the maximum of two days of fever, medical consultation is a must); and Say “no” to indiscriminate fogging, which is not advisable as it only kills the adult mosquitoes and not the eggs.

Provincial Schools Division officials had ordered all public school teachers to conduct a clean-up drive everyday to prevent any portion of the schools to become breeding grounds of mosquitoes in the light of the dengue outbreak.

Desiderio Deligero, chief of the Schools Governance and Operations Division of DepEd-Bohol, said almost all schools in Sagbayan are now affected by the dengue outbreak, and DepEd had intensified dissemination of advocacy materials on preventing dengue infection.

School officials in Sagbayan had participated in the distribution of mosquito nets provided by the local government unit and the ABATE insecticide provided by the Rotary Club of Cebu.

Health officials further reported that, aside from Sagbayan, dengue cases were also recorded in the towns of Clarin, Catigbian, and Jagna.