Dengue cases among kids rising in Central Luzon

Samples of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, responsible for transmitting dengue and Zika, sit in a petri dish. INQUIRER FILES

MABALACAT CITY, Pampanga—At least half of the 18,557 persons infected in the last seven months with dengue virus in Central Luzon were children, data from the Central Luzon Center for Health Development (CLCHD) show.

“Most of the cases belong to the age group [under] 15 years old,” the CLCHD’s Regional Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit said in a document sent to the Inquirer.

A graphical presentation of the dengue cases from January 1 to July 23 shows that about 2,600 children were under 6 years old.

The regional agency said the 18,557 dengue patients’ ages range from under a year to 95 years old, and more than half of them were males.

It recorded 39 deaths due to dengue in Central Luzon as of July 23.

Bulacan had the most fatalities with 16, followed by Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, and Zambales with six each; Bataan and Tarlac with two each’ and Aurora with a single fatality.

Central Luzon reached the epidemic threshold in April, said the regional epidemiology and surveillance unit.

Bulacan had the highest number of dengue cases at 8,434, which is 298-percent more than the 2,120 cases from January 1 to July 23 last year.

Nueva Ecija ranked second with 3,522 cases—81 percent higher than last year’s 1,942.

Pampanga, which had 2,344 dengue cases, ranked third. But its cases this year are lower by 27 percent compared to 3,224 during the same period in 2021.

Zambales had 1,502 cases, which is 28 percent higher than last year’s 1,178. Tarlac had 1,290 (54 percent lower than 2,829 cases last year), and Bataan had 646 (1 percent lower than 652 cases in 2021).

Aurora province registered 819 cases, 1,606-percent higher than its 48 cases in the first seven months of 2021. INQ

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