RISKY. Pedestrians cross flooded MacArthur Highway in Barangay Dalandanan, Valenzuela City in this undated photo. Health experts warn of water-borne diseases such as typhoid fever, cholera, and leptospirosis. (PNA file photo by Joan Bondoc)
ILOILO CITY – The Iloilo Provincial Health Office is warning the public about leptospirosis, urging caution amid the rainy season to prevent the potentially deadly disease.
Iloilo province logged 56 cases based on the Jan. 1 to June 29 morbidity week report of the IPHO.
IPHO Health Service Delivery Division Chief, Dr. Rodney Labis, said the record indicated a 57 percent decrease compared to the same period last year, with 131 cases.
Even with the significant decline in cases, the IPHO still urged rural health unit (RHU) coordinators with recorded cases to closely monitor the disease to prevent an outbreak with the looming La Niña phenomenon.
"Based on our data, the leptospirosis cases are related to farming. There’s a risk for leptospirosis even without flooding," he said in an interview on Thursday.
Leptospirosis is a bacterial disease that affects people and animals through contaminated water and soil.
Symptoms include fever, headache, body and muscle aches, red eyes, and stomach pain. In severe cases, there is a chance of organ damage.
The province has a sufficient supply of antibiotic prophylaxis since a majority of RHUs procured treatment supplies ready for mobilization. (With reports from Grace Salumag/WVSU OJT (PNA)
