Waiting for a vaccine

EDITORIAL

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With the rains and floods come the mosquitoes and the diseases they transmit, including dengue. Even before the onset of the rainy season, however, the Department of Health had already logged over 110,000 dengue cases nationwide from the start of the year until May 10. This was a surge of 224 percent compared to the cases during the same period last year, the DOH said.

Of the 110,000 cases, there were 437 deaths, mostly children aged five to nine. Last February, the DOH launched the "Alas-Kwatro Kontra Mosquito" campaign. It encourages the public to ensure that surroundings are clean and free of stagnant water or damp spots where the dengue vector Aedes aegypti mosquito can breed.