HEALTH Secretary Paulyn Jean Rosell-Ubial called on communities to clean up their surroundings once more as the number of confirmed Zika cases in the country has now increased to 57 as of February 2, 2017. Of the 57, seven were confirmed Zika pregnant cases.
“It is very important to search and destroy the potential breeding sites in order to prevent the spread of Aedes mosquitoes that serve as vector of the virus. We reiterate that cleanliness is still the key against mosquito-borne diseases. The public is reminded to be vigilant and pre-cautious in eliminating mosquito breeding places through the ‘4S campaign.’ The 4S means Search and destroy mosquito breeding places, use Self-protection measures, Seek early consultation for fever lasting more than 2 days, and Say yes to fogging only when there is an impending outbreak,” Ubial said.
As revealed, of the 57, 38 (67 percent) are females and 19 (33 percent) are males. Age ranged from 7 years to 59 years with a median age of 32 years.
These were detected in the National Capital Region (NCR) - 20 cases (35 percent), Calabarzon - 18 cases (32 percent), Western Visayas - 15 cases (26 percent), Central Luzon - 2 cases (4 percent), and Central Visayas - 2 cases (4 percent).
Of the pregnant cases, three came from NCR and two each from Calabarzon and Central Visayas. One case, (a 16-year-old from Las Piñas) already gave birth to a baby boy at full term without microcephaly.
Another case, 32 year old from Central Visayas had spontaneous abortion at 9 weeks of pregnancy. The rest are being closely monitored.
Like dengue and chikungunya, Zika is spread by infected female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Meaning, the prevention aspect is the same: clean up the surroundings and remove all possible breeding areas.
Zika is characterized by fever, rash, and conjunctivitis. Other symptoms are joint pain, muscle pain, headache, and vomiting. It is usually mild with symptoms lasting for a week in most cases and not requiring hospitalization. The symptoms can be cured by common pain and fever relief medicines, rest, and plenty of water intakes.
The greater danger, however, is on pregnant women, as Zika has been linked to congenital microcephaly, where the baby's head is smaller than normal, a congenital condition associated with incomplete brain development.
Thus, aside from the appeal to clean up the surroundings regularly so as to reduce proliferation of mosquitoes, pregnant women who manifest symptoms of Zika should seek medical attention and not just take common pain and fever medicines.
True, there is yet to be a confirmed case in Mindanao, but it's a fact that the carrier mosquitoes are here, and by cleaning up regularly, you save your family from not just one but three diseases: Zika, chikungunya, and dengue.