ILOILO City – Twenty-six high school students in Calinog, Iloilo were infected with Hepatitis A. The local health office suspected they got the viral disease from contaminated food in their canteen.
Laboratory tests performed on July 25 on students of Don Esteban Javellana Memorial National High School in Barangay Guiso confirmed the infection, Dr. Cesar Rey Mestidio, municipal health officer, told the press on Tuesday.
Students from grades 7 to 12 with symptoms including fever and jaundice were taken to the Municipal Health Office (MHO).
Five of the 26 students suffering from similar symptoms tested positive for hepatitis A, Mestidio said.
One of the food handlers at the school’s canteen also tested positive for the viral disease, the MHO said.
Hepatitis A is transmitted from person to person commonly via the consumption of food or drinks contaminated with human waste, Mestidio explained.
Any person positive for the hepatitis A virus may serve as a “carrier” that could infect other people, he said.
“The disease will continue spreading as long as there is a carrier,” he stressed.
Mestidio noted that the students drink mineral water sold at the canteen via a coin-operated dispenser.
In light of the incident, the Don Esteban Javellana Memorial National High School staff decided to temporarily close their canteen.
The MHO also advised the students’ parents to provide their children with clean packed food.
The infected students had no more symptoms after they were provided with medication at the MHO.
The school now strongly advocates hand-washing before and after eating among students./PN
