Dengue deaths increase in Negros, C. Mindanao

Dengue fever is claiming more and more lives in several provinces with at least 36 deaths already registered in Negros Occidental and Central Mindanao.

In Negros Occidental, health officials said the number of deaths due to dengue this year is at least four times higher than last year’s.

The number of dengue deaths in Negros Occidental since January has reached 14 compared to only three during the entire year last year, according to Dr. Ernell Tumimbang, Negros Occidental provincial health officer.

In Central Mindanao, the Department of Health has raised the highest alert against dengue cases as the mosquito-borne disease has already killed 22 people since January.

More than 4,000 cases of dengue have been reported in the region, according to health officials.

Four of the dengue fatalities in Negros Occidental were from Bacolod City while the others were from different cities and towns in the province, which has reported 2,511 dengue cases.

Tumimbang reiterated a call for the people of Negros Occidental to help eliminate the breeding places of mosquitoes.

Dr. Marlyn Concovar, Central Mindanao health chief, said the number of dengue cases in the region is much higher than last year’s. Jenny Ventura, Central Mindanao health department spokesperson, said at least 40 percent of dengue patients in Central Mindanao are children up to 10 years old.

Ventura said North Cotabato had the highest number of dengue cases. The town worst-hit by dengue, however, is Tupi in South Cotabato, where a state of calamity has been declared.

“This is alarming,” said Myka Lintongan, a nurse at the regional health office, in an article posted on the health department website. Carla Gomez, Inquirer Visayas, and Edwin Fernandez, Inquirer Mindanao