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Thursday, December 9, 2010

Rise in dengue cases an effect of climate change — DOH official

An article from Balita, excerpt :

" DAVAO CITY, Dec. 8 : The high incidence of dengue cases nationwide is an effect of climate change, according to Department of Health (DOH) Assistant Secretary Paulyn Jean B. Rosell-Ubial.

Ubial said the dengue problem this year has increased tremendously at 120,000 cases. The recorded cases from 1993 to 2009 was only as high as 6,000.

"Climate change is not the future anymore, it is with us now," Ubial said.

Dengue has four strains and what happened now was of multi-strain, Ubial stressed when she discussed the disease recently in a forum in Davao City entitled Biodiversity Conservation: Tropical Diseases and Public Health.

The DOH official also said there are other diseases that the public must be aware of namely the influenza virus, the H5N5 that was reported in HongKong and also the HIV-AIDS.

The HIV/AIDS cases doubled in the past years from 2006 to the present, Ubial said as she cited that unprotected sex between those infected with the disease covers 85 percent of cases, attributed to more men having sex with men in the last five years."

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