Fair weather causes dip in dengue cases

MANILA, Philippines — Thanks to fair weather these past weeks, the Department of Health (DOH) has recorded a drop in dengue cases for the first time since an outbreak of the mosquito-borne disease was declared in August.

Based on the DOH Epidemiology Bureau’s monitoring, only 6,561 new dengue cases were reported from Oct. 6 to 12, a figure 18 percent lower than that from the same period last year, and half the more than 13,000 new cases recorded in the first week of September.

“Every week, (the number of cases) is going down. Obviously because the weather has begun to improve and that’s a big factor,” said Health Secretary Francisco Duque III.

In August, the DOH declared a dengue epidemic as weekly cases hit more than 10,000 and the number of cases nationwide nearly doubled from the previous year, with 14,321 cases recorded from July 28 to Aug. 3.