Lapu reports decrease in dengue cases

Health authorities of Lapu-Lapu City reported a decrease in dengue cases in the first half of the year compared to the same period last year.

Dr. Rodolfo Berame, city health officer, said they  recorded 83 dengue cases from January to May this year with one death.

This, he said, is a decrease from last year’s 125 cases.

Berame also disputed   figures released by the Department of Health’s Regional Epidemiology Surveillance Unit in Region 7 (Resu-7) which reported  155 cases and three deaths caused by the mosquito-borne disease.

The only dengue  patient in the city who died this year was an 8-year-old child from barangay Mactan in January, said Berame.

He said the error in the Resu-7 report was  caused by double listing of names.

“We already checked it, and we found out that some of the names were listed twice. We  already corrected the master list and came up with only 83 cases,” Berame said.

The latest dengue bulletin of the DOH in Central Visayas lists Lapu-Lapu City as having the third most number of cases in the region.

The top 2 are Cebu City and Dumaguete City in Negros Oriental.

With the onset of the rainy reason, health officials have reminded the public to keep surroundings free of stagnant water pools where mosquitoes can breed.

Even flower vases and household containers  are potential sites for mosquitoes to lay eggs.

The disease is caused by a virus carried by the mosquito Aedes aegypti.