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LEPTOSPIROSIS - PHILIPPINES (04)
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A ProMED-mail post
<http://www.promedmail.org>
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
<http://www.isid.org>
Date: Thu 22 Oct 2009
Source: ABS-CBN News [edited]
<http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/10/22/09/rps-leptospirosis-outbreak-one-worlds-biggest>
The Philippines' outbreak of leptospirosis is one of the world's
biggest although the Department of Health (DOH) on Thursday [22 Oct
2009] said fewer people are falling sick from the bacterial
infection. DOH National Epidemiology Center chief Dr Eric Tayag told
Umagang Kay Ganda (UKG) on Thursday that from 1-15 Oct 2009, a total
of 1887 leptospirosis cases were reported in 15 hospitals in Metro
Manila, with 138 deaths.
"We are monitoring San Lazaro Hospital right now where leptospirosis
cases reported daily have gone down from 40 to 14. Most of the cases
are from Metro Manila and Rizal," he said. He said other areas that
were not affected by typhoons Ondoy (Ketsana) and Pepeng are also
reporting cases of leptospirosis.
Tayag said the outbreak of leptospirosis prompted health secretary
Francisco Duque III to issue a distress call for help from the
international community to address the problem. "We have also ready
sent an SOS to the international community because this is the one of
the biggest outbreaks not just in the Philippines but in the world,"
he said Wednesday [21 Oct 2009] in a Senate committee hearing
investigating the health impact of the 2 typhoons that ravaged Metro
Manila and the provinces of Northern Luzon in the last 4 weeks.
Tayag said the DOH will spray seawater in areas that were most
affected by the disease outbreak. He said foreign research showed
that the leptospira bacterium, which comes from the urine of infected
animals, usually dies when exposed to salt water or direct sunlight.
The DOH earlier identified the critical areas in Marikina City with 8
barangays [barangay, that is, barrio, is the smallest administrative
division in the Philippines], Paranaque City with 6 barangays; Pasig
City and Taguig with 5 each; Muntinlupa City, Makati City, and Pasay
City with 3 each; Caloocan City and Quezon City with 2 each, and San
Juan with the town of Navotas with one each.
He said the country will be sending samples of the leptospira
bacterium to the World Health Organization to identify the particular
strain of leptospirosis prevalent in the country and what type of
vaccine should be used.
Health authorities earlier advised the public not to wade in flood
waters and to use protective clothing in order to prevent flood-borne
diseases like leptospirosis, typhoid fever, cholera, and hepatitis.
Duque also urged local government units to ensure that evacuation
centers and areas affected by floods are clean. He added that all
citizens should practice proper handwashing and thoroughly clean
their surroundings, especially watery areas where mosquitoes and
bacteria can thrive. This is to prevent against the spread of typhoid
and cholera, and to prevent water contamination.
The DOH had launched its prophylaxis program last week [week of 12
Oct 2009], with the aim of distributing 4 million antibiotics and
prophylactic medicines (medicines that can prevent the onset of a
disease) in typhoon-affected areas. The program will run for 10
weeks, and will cost the DOH PHP 40 million [approx USD 850 000]. On
Tuesday [20 Oct 2009], the health bureau received 60 boxes of
prophylactic medicines at their warehouse. Pharmaceutical company
Pfizer also donated PHP 1 million [approx USD 20 000] worth of
medicines for leptospirosis. According to Duque, these will be
distributed to over 1.3 million patients in the National Capital
Region, Laguna province, and Rizal province.
The warehouse also has stocks of ointments for skin ailments like
athlete's foot and eczema, which have spread in evacuation centers
after victims were exposed to dirty flood waters and bacteria.
--
Communicated by:
HealthMap Alerts via ProMED-mail
<promed@promedmail.org>
[Leptospirosis is a disease associated with freshwater flooding, as
is now occurring in the Metro Manila after 2 typhoons that hit the
Philippine island of Luzon within several days of each other. The
pathogen that causes leptospirosis, _Leptospira interrogans_, does
not do well in brackish or sea water or, for example, flood water
that would occur after a tidal wave. They only survive for a few
hours in salt water, but can survive in fresh water outside the host
for many days or even weeks.
No vaccine to prevent leptospirosis is available at the present time
for use in humans, although veterinary leptospirosis vaccines are in use.
Maps of the Philippines can be found at
<http://healthmap.org/r/00Wi> and
<http://www.reliefweb.int/mapc/asi_se/cnt/phil/phl_ad.html>. - Mod.ML]
[ProMED-mail would like to thank Dr. George Robertson for submitting
a similar article on the status of this outbreak. - Mod.MPP]
[see also:
Leptospirosis - Philippines (03) 20091019.3591
Leptospirosis - Philippines (02): background 20091018.3579
Leptospirosis - Philippines: (MM,RI) 20091016.3561
Leptospirosis - India (02) 20090404.1296
Leptospirosis - India: (north), 2007 20090403.1292
Leptospirosis - Fiji (03) 20090225.0772
Leptospirosis - Fiji (02) 20090207.0554
Leptospirosis - Fiji 20090204.0502
2008
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Leptospirosis - Guyana (coastal) 20081231.4131
Leptospirosis - Sri Lanka (07): (NW) 20081231.4127
Leptospirosis, fatal - UK (02) 20081010.3210
Leptospirosis, fatal - UK: rodent scratch 20081007.3173
Leptospirosis, sea mammals - USA: (CA) 20081003.3125
Leptospirosis - Sri Lanka (06) 20080927.3058
Leptospirosis - Sri Lanka (05) 20080922.2984
Leptospirosis - Sri Lanka (04) 20080909.2810
Leptospirosis - Philippines: (Davao Region) 20080626.1967
Leptospirosis - Sri Lanka (03): background 20080610.1836
Leptospirosis - Sri Lanka (02): hantavirus also susp. 20080606.1808
Leptospirosis - Sri Lanka: RFI 20080605.1801
Leptospirosis - New Caledonia (02): background 20080408.1291
Leptospirosis - New Caledonia 20080407.1281
Leptospirosis - Peru: (Loreto), new species 20080407.1279
Leptospirosis - Jamaica 20080125.0312
2007
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Leptospirosis - Dominican Republic 20071124.3804
Leptospirosis - Jamaica (02) 20071018.3409
Leptospirosis - Ukraine (Lvov, Kiev, Kherson) 20071018.3401
Leptospirosis - Jamaica 20071016.3383
Leptospirosis, fatal - Sri Lanka (Matara) 20070914.3051
Leptospirosis - China (Hong Kong) 20070821.2725
Leptospirosis - Argentina (Santa Fe) 20070429.1395
2006
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Leptospirosis - India (Gujarat): not hantavirus 20060831.2476
Leptospirosis - India (Kerala) 20060609.1612
Leptospirosis - India (Karnataka) 20060123.0226]
...................................ml/mj/mpp
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