Pertusis cases in PH still on upward trend — DOH

Department of Health (DOH) (File Photo: Department of Health (Philippines)/Facebook)

MANILA – Cases of pertussis or whooping cough in the country are on an upward trend with 1,566 recorded infections as of April 13.

“Hindi pa po natin nakikita ang downward trend. Hinihintay pa natin pumasok ang epekto nung pagbabakuna (We don’t see the downward trend yet. We’re still waiting for the effect of the vaccination),” Department of Health (DOH) spokesperson Assistant Secretary Albert Domingo said in a Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon briefing Tuesday.

He said there are 19 cases of pertussis with two confirmed deaths in Quezon City as of April 13.

On March 21, Mayor Joy Belmonte declared an outbreak of the disease in the city as it has logged 23 cases, including the death of four infants aged 22 to 60 days earlier that month.

Domingo said pertussis is a vaccine-preventable illness. Pentavalent vaccines protect children against diptheria, tetanus, pertussis, influenza type B and hepatitis B.

“Number one, kailangan mabakunahan ‘no, pero kung nag-aantay pa tayo, ang ating baby o ang ating anak, huwag muna natin masyadong ipahalubilo sa mga ibang bata kasi makukuha nila iyan eh (vaccination, but if you’re waiting for your babies to be vaccinated, avoid mingling them with other people because they might get the disease),” he said.

Meanwhile adults are advised to observe health practices like regular and proper washing of hands and wearing of face masks to protect themselves from getting the disease.

“We continue to wait for the 3 million vaccines incoming as soon as possible. In addition to that, we still have 5.1 million doses we’re procuring,” he added.

Earlier, the DOH said 800,000 to 1 million doses of vaccine against pertussis will arrive in June through United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund.

It also assured the public that it has allocated more than PHP8 billion for the procurement of all types of vaccines.