The Philippine health department on Thursday raised the alarm over the nearly 50-per-cent increase of dengue fever cases in the first seven months of the year dpa reported
Enrique Ona, secretary of the Department of Health, urged people to maintain cleanliness in their surroundings and get rid of potential breeding sites of mosquitoes carrying the dengue virus.
Ona said dengue cases from January to July rose by 48 per cent to 40,648 from 27,473 for the same period last year.
Ona added that deaths caused by dengue rose to 328 in the first seven months of the year from 293 for the same period last year.
The health department said that while dengue is an all-year disease, cases tend to spike during the rainy season