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Sunday, May 30, 2004
2 Cordillera OFWs in HIV watchlist
By Harley Palangchao
TWO Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) from the Cordillera region are reportedly included in the HIV watchlist. An official of the Baguio Health Department, however, said the two were already declared out of danger.
Dr. Cecilia Brillantes, head of the BHD Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit, said the Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center (BGHMC) also sent blood samples of the two OFWs to a hospital in Manila for laboratory tests. The result of the lab test has yet to be released.
Brillantes refused to describe the two OFWs or what countries they came from. She only reported that the OFWs include a female and a male.
Brillantes said the OFWs were included in the list of "high risk sectors," which also include sex workers. She said OFWs face the risk of contracting HIV/AIDS, especially when they involve themselves in a sexual relationship with a foreigner having multiple sex partners.
The government is also giving pre-departure orientation seminars on AIDS and other sexually-transmitted diseases to OFWs leaving the country but said that knowing all information about HIV-AIDS is not enough in one setting.
"What I mean is that concerned government officials cannot change the behavior of these OFWs regarding the risks of acquiring HIV/AIDS in just one seminar. There should be a follow-up orientation," she explained.
Despite the continuing government effort, the number of Filipinos diagnosed with HIV/AIDS is increasing. In April 2003, 16 more Filipinos belonging to the 19 to 55-age bracket were found to be HIV-positive, bringing the total number of Filipinos with HIV/AIDS to 1,866 since January 1984.
Of these, the Philippine National AIDS Council revealed that OFWs now comprise more than 30 percent of the number of HIV/AIDS cases. The disease also afflicts a number of OFW spouses.
Meanwhile, Brillantes reported that the number of sexually transmitted infections (STI) in Baguio from January to April this year was pegged at close to 200, which she claimed is slightly lower than the STI cases recorded during the same period last year.
Brillantes attributed the slight decrease to the increasing awareness on condom use by club entertainers and the general public.
She also reported there were around 350 registered club entertainers in Baguio as against the 400 to 1,000 unregistered club entertainers, excluding the number of college students doubling as sex workers.
HIV positive
Persons who get infected by the virus, Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) suffers fever, headache, sore muscles and joints, stomach ache, swollen lymph glands, or a skin rash for one or two weeks. Most people think it's the flu. Some people have no symptoms.
The virus will multiply in your body for a few weeks or even months before your immune system responds. During this time, you won't test positive for HIV, but you can infect other people.
When the immune system responds, it starts to make antibodies. When this happens, you will test positive for HIV. After the first flu-like symptoms, some people with HIV stay healthy for ten years or longer. But during this time, HIV is damaging your immune system.
One way to measure the damage to your immune system is to count your CD4+ cells. These cells, also called "T-helper" cells, are an important part of the immune system.
A person might start having signs of HIV disease like fevers, night sweats, diarrhea, or swollen lymph nodes. If you have HIV disease, these problems will last more than a few days, and probably continue for several weeks.
(May 30, 2004 issue)
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