By Paulo Loreto Lim

According to the Provincial Health Office (PHO), a recent dengue-related death in Sagay City notched up the number of deaths associated with the virus to 32 this year.

Last week, data from the PHO revealed a total 31 dengue-related deaths had been recorded in Negros Occidental this year, an addition of six cases since their previous report, which was released during the prior week.

The Provincial Dengue Control Team has since been tasked with looking into the spike in deaths.

“We would like to determine why such deaths happened,” said medical specialist II, Dr. Jessica Fama. “Is it due to inadequate hospital care or could patients have been in critical condition when brought to the hospital?”

The team is comprised of physicians from the PHO and Teresita L. Jalandoni Provincial Hospital in Silay City.

Earlier, the Bacolod City Health Office (CHO) noted a drop of 19.8 percent among local dengue cases, with the most recent fatality being a four-year-old resident./DGB, WDJ