By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

 Schools in Negros Occidental’s San Carlos City were forced to switch to modular learning after 1,547 elementary and high school students were affected by sore eyes.

Dr. Evangelene Froilan, Department of Education-City Schools Division medical officer, said 10 teaching staff were also infected.

A memorandum was issued to temporarily suspend face-to-face classes to prevent infections from spreading among students and teaching personnel.

They also ordered a complete disinfection of all schools in the city, and a prior assessment must be performed before allowing schools to resume face-to-face classes.

The City Health Office also conducted information dissemination to local residents.

Sore eyes, also known as “viral conjunctivitis,” is highly contagious with most common causes blamed on adenoviruses.

According to the United States Centers for Disease Control, most viruses that cause conjunctivitis spread through eye contact from contaminated hands or objects.

In the Philippines, sore eyes frequently appear during the dry season./DGB, WDJ