CEBU CITY, Philippines — Local health authorities are urging Cebuanos to be vigilant and wary of dengue, which has infected hundreds of individuals here this year.
The World Health Organization (WHO) defines dengue as a viral infection transmitted to humans through the bite of infected mosquitoes; the primary vectors that transmit the disease are “Aedes aegypti” mosquitoes.
The WHO-Western Pacific Region said among the main symptoms of dengue is high fever reaching 40 degrees Celsius accompanied by two of the following symptoms: severe headache, pain behind the eyes, muscle and joint pains, nausea, vomiting, and swollen glands.
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According to WHO, a patient may have dengue complications if one experiences any of the following symptoms, between 3 to 7 days after the first symptoms of dengue occurred and once the fever has subsided: severe abdominal pain, bleeding gums, persistent vomiting, fatigue, restlessness, rapid breathing, and blood in vomit.
Those who experiences any dengue symptoms are advised to seek immediate medical attention.
The Cebu City Health Department (CHD), in an earlier report, revealed that by the end of June 2022, the city recorded an additional 250 dengue cases for that month alone.
This is lower than that of May 2022, which was the peak of the dengue cases at 361, but the recorded cases in June brought the total number of dengue cases this year to over 1,200.
Doctor Jeffrey Ibones, the acting City Health Officer, earlier, said they are hoping for a downtrend in the coming months, but are also aware of the possibility of a rise in July 2022.
Local health authorities have also asked the public to do their share in curbing dengue as the City government cannot handle all the search and destroy operations for all areas in the City
Under the related executive order issued by Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, each household is responsible for cleaning up its own vicinity, and with this, Ibones urged them to ensure that there is no stagnant water laying around their homes, especially that Cebu is now experiencing intermittent rains.
/bmjo
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