DOH to Activate 6 Zika Virus Testing Centers in PHL

332 MICROCEPHALY CASES IN PHL IN 10 YEARS

The Department of Health (DOH) on Tuesday said it will activate six testing centers for th Zika virus.

DOH Secretary Janette Garin said the testing centers include the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine in Muntilupa City, Baguio General Hospital in Baguio City, Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center in Cebu City, Southern Philippines Medical Center in Davao City, the Lung Center of the Philippines in Quezon City and San Lazaro Hospital in Manila City.

Garin said that there are at least 1,000 Zika virus testing kits in the Philippines and a thousand more will arrive by next week.

She added that testing kits for the Zika virus will also be commercially available in the country soon.

“Do we do it to anybody who has symptoms? Puwede ba siyang (testing kits) makuha ng kahit na sinong gustong magpa-test? No, we do not advice that. We do not like to create panic and overreaction in this situation. We would like to target our effort and expenditures on when and to whom it is necessary,” Garin said.

She added: “We are reserving that for those who really need to be tested. Kapag uubusin natin ‘yun at may pasyente na tayong may sintomas, wala na tayong magagamit.”

The DOH secretary highlighted the World Health Organization’s (WHO) recommendation to avoid the testing on people without symptoms and protect existing resources while there is still an immediate need for aggressive production of Zika virus testing kits.

Microcephaly cases in PHL

Garin said during the press conference that the Zika virus is spread by the dengue-carrying aedes aegypti mosquito.

While there is a large population of this type of mosquito in the Philippines, the health secretary assured that the country remains free of the Zika virus, which has been declared by the World Health Organization as a global health emergency.

She said that more than 20 countries have been confirmed with transmission of Zika virus in the last nine months. Most of these countries are in the Caribbean Island and Latin America.

“The report that has reached us is that there is a reported microcephaly cases of 4,180 as of January 22 in Brazil, 512 were tested. Forty-four percent show the possible indication or relation to Zika virus infection, 55% were ruled out,” Garin said.

She said that the DOH has traced a total of 332 cases of microcephaly in the Philippines for the past 10 years.

Garin added, “In other words, we cannot see a situation similar to the Caribbean and Latin American countries. But because the vector—o ‘yung tinatawag nating lamok, the Aedes mosquitoes—is present in the Philippines, we are being very aggressive and vigilant in terms of surveillance and information dissemination,” she said.

Enhanced surveillance

Garin said that the DOH has intensified the screening of arriving passengers at international airports as part of the governments effort to prevent the spread of the Zika virus into the country.

The thermal screening equipment being used to detect bird flu and the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) are also being used for the screening of passengers for Zika virus.

“We have also enhanced our surveillance system. People in the regional offices and the provincial offices have been told to report possible cases of Zika virus infection. Laboratory capabilities has been enhanced. There will be six active laboratories capable of testing by next week,” she said.

She added that the DOH has also started to coordinate with other agencies to promote cleanliness to control the population of mosquitoes in the country.

Garin also reminded the public, particularly those who have travelled to countries with confirmed Zika virus transmission, that the symptoms of the virus may be felt within two to seven days.

Among the symptoms of Zika virus are mild fever, skin rash, conjunctivitis, and muscle and joint pain and fatigue.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention has identified countries with “active Zika virus transmission.”

These countries include:

Barbados
Bolivia
Brazil
Colombia
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, US territory
Costa Rica
Curacao
Dominican Republic
Ecuador
El Salvador
French Guiana
Guadeloupe
Guatemala
Guyana
Haiti
Honduras
Martinique
Mexico
Nicaragua
Panama
Paraguay
Saint Martin
Suriname
U.S. Virgin Islands
Venezuela
American Samoa
Samoa
Cape Verde

The United States was not included in the list because there are no locally transmitted Zika cases in the country, “but cases have been reported in returning travelers.”

The WHO has said that a vaccine for the Zika virus has yet to be developed. Two potential vaccine candidates are being considered in the United States. —ALG, GMA News

(Source: GMAnetwork.com)

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