Alarming dengue

She looked at me in the eye while she cried her heart out. Her seven-year-old son had been having a very bad episode of fever for the past four days. He didn't want to eat at all. Laboratory tests found he was positive for dengue. The child next to their bed in the ward already died, leaving her completely scared. This was the situation inside the Governor Celestino Gallares Provincial Hospital in Bohol. The clinicians could not quite understand why there is a sudden increase in dengue case, and these are cases that aren't ordinary. They are hard to treat and difficult to manage. Since my visit last Wednesday, 11 children already died. Today, I heard there were two more. It seems like the virus has gone berserk.

There are no reports of a dengue increase in Cebu - but I have personally seen how the virus has become in season. I was with my friend Thursday night who was confused at her son's condition. The platelet count was unbelievably low and he was coughing like crazy. It was still a suspected dengue cases. If confirmed, it may be his fourth already - a fact that the medical staff in the hospital scoffed at. It could happen. Dengue could recur again and again especially if the carrier of such a virus is just around.

Dengue is serious and it is deadly. The government has already tried to introduce vaccines for this disease but we all knew what happened; Dengvaxia was a failure. Now, the best thing we can do is prevent this. It is very basic and the Department of Health has even narrowed it down to a simple 4S. Basically, the essence of it is to have your surroundings clean. The virus comes the mosquito which breeds on sites that have water. If stagnant water becomes unnoticed in your household, then the dengue mosquito is bound to proliferate.

It seems like we cannot put a stop to dengue. I couldn't personally tell where to point my finger - the people who should be responsible enough to clean their own mess or the government who seems to downplay this situation? The sudden rise makes it more alarming, especially that it isn't a virus that responds to the usual medication for patients.

The DOH is now boasting of the universal health law. It seems like a longshot but we can give it a try. Honestly, I doubt that it will work. Hospitals even charge you for the smallest object that you can get from them, even basics such as water and food. Where did the heart for service go?

The rainy season and the sudden change in temperature is indeed a factor for the cases of the different viruses to activate at this time of the year. Aside from practicing hygiene, we can always be clean to protect ourselves from whatever virus may come. Let's be an alarmist in a positive way, clean as we all go.