ILOILO – The Iloilo Provincial Health Office (IPHO) confirmed an outbreak of hand-foot-and-mouth disease (HFMD) after recording a 2,004 percent increase in cases.
From Jan. 1 to Feb. 4, the IPHO logged 1,115 HFMD cases; there were only 53 cases in the same period last year.
HFMD is characterized by painful sores in the mouth and a rash on the hands and feet. Commonly caused by the coxsackievirus, this contagious infection occurs mostly in children.
“There is an outbreak of cases, may unusually high increase of cases man gid compared to previous years,” said IPHO head, Dr. Maria Socorro Colmenares-Quiñon. “Kon basehan naton ang definition sang outbreak or epidemic, by definition, naka-fit-in siya sa criteria.”
An outbreak is an epidemic limited to a localized increase in disease incidence. An epidemic, on the other hand, refers to the occurrence in a community or region of cases of an illness, specific health-related behaviors, or other health-related events clearly over normal expectancy.
According to the IPHO, the number of cases indicating the presence of an epidemic varies according to the agent, size, type of population exposed, previous experience or lack of exposure to the disease, and time and place of occurrence.
In HFMD Morbidity Week No. 1, the province logged 119 cases; Morbidity Week No. 2 (172 cases); Morbidity Week No. 3 (284 cases); Morbidity Week No. 4 (333 cases); and Morbidity Week No. 5 (207 cases).
“Gin-compute naton in the last five years, ang aton alert and epidemic threshold, of course, na-breach gid ‘ya with the number of cases now,” Colmenares-Quiñon further explained.
The IPHO defined an alert threshold as the level of disease occurrence that serves as an early warning for an epidemic, while an epidemic threshold is the level of disease occurrence above which an urgent response is required.
However, the IPHO said it would not declare a state of calamity yet, justifying that the provincial government is on top of the situation and that it is still manageable.
“To declare a state of calamity, indi na ‘ya si PHO lang ang makahambal. Of course, it has to go through a process. But as to the severity of these cases, the majority of them have already recovered. And most likely, ang Morbidity Week No. 5 nga 207 cases amo na lang ibilin kay last week pa ini, and most likely gamay na lang ‘ni sa ila ang nabilin or not recovered,” the IPHO head said.
Aside from this, the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) also had to convene before declaring such, she added.
“Rest assured that LGUs (local government units) with PHO are doing something about preventing more spread,” said Comenares-Quiñon.
In the meantime, the IPHO, together with the 43 LGUs, intensified its education and information campaign to prevent the spread of HFMD.
The towns with the highest cumulative cases of HFMD this year are Santa Barbara (100), Barotac Viejo (82), Badiangan (78), Alimodian (77), Calinog (69), Bingawan (65), Leon (49), Passi City (48), Dumangas (43), and Pavia (42).
The remaining cumulative cases per town were from Banate (42), Pototan (41), Lemery (38), Barotac Nuevo (36), San Dionisio (35), Zarraga (32), Igbaras (32), Tigbauan (29), Mina (27), San Rafael (22), Lambunao (21), Oton (15), Cabatuan (15), Anilao (13), San Miguel (12), Tubungan (12), Batad (11), Balasan (nine), Janiuay (eight), New Lucena (four), Dueñas (three), Miag-ao (three), Leganes (one), and Maasin (one).
Nine towns had zero cases: Dingle, Ajuy, Carles, Concepcion, Estancia, Guimbal, San Enrique, San Joaquin, and Sara.
The most affected age groups are:
* less than one year old – 66 cases
* one to 10 years old – 1,023 cases
* 11 to 20 years old – 20 cases
* 21 to 30 years old – one case
* 31 to 40 years old – four cases
* 41 years old and above – one case
According to Colmenares-Quiñon, HFMD is transmitted from person to person through contact with an infected person’s fluids, such as saliva.
It could also be contracted through open wounds or blisters or after touching contaminated objects or the feces of an HFMD-infected person, she added.
Quiñon reminded everyone, especially parents, to observe preventive measures such as the following:
* Make sure you and your children wash and disinfect their hands frequently.
* Wear a mask when feeling unwell.
* Check your child’s temperature before sending them to school.
* Disinfect toys and frequently touched surfaces with disinfectant or bleach.
* Do not touch your eyes, nose, or mouth with an unwashed hand.
The IPHO head explained that since children are the most affected age group, parents or guardians must make sure that their children wash their hands frequently. She added that toys and other commonly touched areas or objects must be regularly disinfected as well.
If a child or a person has HFMD:
* Inform the nearest health centers so they can take extra precautionary steps.
* Avoid going to school and other public places.
* Give paracetamol for fever and apply a tepid sponge bath.
* Make sure children drink a lot of water to prevent dehydration.
* Prepare soft foods, including fruits that are best chilled, to help ease discomfort from mouth ulcers.
Colmenares-Quiñon also told parents to avoid kissing or hugging if their kids have HFMD. Avoid sharing utensils, observe physical distance, wear a mask when sneezing, and do not touch the blisters to avoid infection, she added.
HFMD may cause all of the following signs and symptoms or just some of them:
* fever
* sore throat
* feeling unwell
* painful, red, blister-like lesions on the tongue, gums, and inside of the cheeks
* a red rash, without itching but sometimes with blistering, on the palms, soles, and sometimes the buttocks
* irritability in infants and toddler
* loss of appetite./PN
