CEBU CITY, Cebu (PIA) – Due to the increasing dengue cases in Central Visayas this year, health experts emphasized the critical need for community awareness and preventive measures against mosquito-borne disease.
Dr. Marie Ellaine Nielo, member of the Philippine Pediatric Society-Central Visayas (PPS-7) and a pediatrician of the Chong Hua Hospital, said that children are among the most susceptible to dengue-related death.
“It’s really the one to 10 years old who are affected,” she said.
Nielo said parents should learn how to recognize the warning signs and symptoms that indicate a need for immediate medical attention, including persistent vomiting, severe abdominal pain, lethargy or restlessness, bleeding from the gums or nose, blood in vomitus or stool, and absence of urination for six hours.
“These are the signs we usually teach parents in the community to watch out for. And if they notice these in their kids or in their relatives, seek urgent medical attention in the hospital,” she said.
Nielo said that currently, there is no specific antiviral treatment for dengue.
She stressed that the best way to treat patients with dengue right now is through ‘supportive treatment’.
“We advise patients to rest. We monitor temperature. We give them adequate nutrition. We make sure that they drink enough so that they can pee enough. And lastly, have a CBC done if this is advised by the doctor, and, of course, we continue to protect them from mosquito bites,” she said.
Nielo highlighted the importance of the 4S strategy of the Department of Health (DOH): seeking and destroying mosquito breeding grounds, seeking early consultation of fever, self-protection measures like wearing long clothing and using insect repellant, and supporting fogging hotspot areas.
Nielo said that health authorities continue to urge the public to remain vigilant and take proactive steps to end the spread of dengue. (MSH/PIA7 Cebu)
