Dengue cases in Quezon City went down by 22 percent this year compared to last year, according to Mayor Joy Belmonte.
Despite this, Belmonte on Thursday directed concerned health and barangay officials to stay vigilant and double their efforts in fighting dengue infections, following the Department of Health’s declaration of a national dengue epidemic.
Citing a report from the city’s Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit, the mayor said a total of 2,730 dengue cases with 21 casualties were reported from Jan. 1 to July 27.
In 2018, there were 3,498 cases and 26 deaths in the same time span, she added.
In 2017, the city government recorded 7,527 dengue cases with 75 deaths, while there were 8,158 cases with 74 deaths in 2018, Belmonte said.
The mayor said they are closely monitoring the top 10 villages with the highest number of dengue cases in the first six months of 2019.
These are barangays Payatas A and B, Commonwealth, Batasan, Fairview, Kamuning, Tatalon, Pasong Tamo, Tandang Sora, Bagong Silangan and Bagbag.
Even before the national epidemic was declared, Belmonte had already put in place several measures as part of efforts to combat the mosquito-borne disease.
She assured the availability of rapid diagnostics test kits or NS1 in health centers to help diagnose and assess dengue cases, and arrange a referral mechanism for patients with warning signs of dengue and are in need immediate hospitalization in government hospitals within Quezon City.
Belmonte instructed the city hall’s Barangay and Community Relation Department, and Environmental Protection and Waste Management Department to maintain cleanliness and get rid of breeding grounds of mosquitoes.
