THE Bacolod City Health Office (CHO) will validate the data of the Department of Health Epidemiology Bureau showing Bacolod as second to the National Capital Region (NCR) in terms of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection-Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (HIV-Aids) cases.
Dr. Babylin Drilon, head of the CHO Social Hygiene Clinic, said Monday, October 30, that from 2007 to October 2017, Negros Occidental has a total of 590 HIV-Aids positive cases, of which 300 are from Bacolod.
She noted that the DOH Epidemiology Bureau records showed that Bacolod has a total of 340 HIV-Aids cases.
“We will check the records of DOH-Manila because we have different records here,” she added.
Drilon issued the statement after it was reported in a local newspaper (not SunStar Bacolod) that Bacolod is second to NCR in terms of HIV-Aids cases.
She pointed out that in Western Visayas, from 2007 to October 2017, Negros Occidental has 590 HIV-Aids positive cases while Iloilo City has more than 700.
“Negros Occidental is only number two to Iloilo City, and we are not sure if Bacolod is second to NCR,” Drilon said.
She added that the 300 patients are all residents of Bacolod between 18 and 62 years old.
Drilon said the Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital in Bacolod is providing antiretroviral treatment that can slow the course of the disease and may lead to a near-normal life expectancy.
She added that the average survival of the patients is five to 10 years, depending on the lifestyle of the persons with HIV-Aids.
Drilon also said that from 2007 to October 2017, Bacolod has a total of 59 deaths due to HIV-Aids.
The CHO is now conducting a free HIV testing in various villages, she said.