09 September 2005
Meningococcemia claims 4th victim
THE dreaded meningococcemia has claimed its fourth victim in Pangasinan. A 40-year old man from Binmaley died last Wednesday in one of the private hospitals in Dagupan City.
Dr. Leonard Carbonell, city health officer in Dagupan City, said he talked to the sister of the victim over the phone who said the attending physician at the Villaflor Hospital told them to bury their dead within 12 hours and prohibited them from holding a wake.
The family did what was advised them but consulted Carbonell when they saw in the death certificate that the cause of death was septicemia.
Carbonell advised the family that the attending physician did the right thing because he was not so sure it was meningococcemia that caused the death of the patient, adding that septecemia was the safest description of the disease, which means bacteria was present in the blood.
In infectious disease such as meningococcemia, the blood culture of the patient is sent to the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) in Manila for detailed laboratory analysis before a definite medical finding is ever announced.
Three other persons suspected to have died of meningococcemia were a six-year old boy from Malasiqui, and two middle-aged men from Balungao and Sta. Barbara, who all died in a private hospital in Dagupan on different dates.
Carbonell confirmed the death of the six-year old boy from Malasiqui in a private hospital based on a report relayed to him.
It was Dr. Jose Soriano, leader of the Provincial Health Team stationed in Pangasinan, meanwhile who confirmed the two suspected meningococcemia cases from Balungao and Sta. Barbara.
Soriano said it is not yet safe to say the patients died from meningococcemia because the results of the analysis of the blood culture of the patients have not yet been released by RITM.
Asked if the situation as far as meningococcemia in Pangasinan is now getting alarming, Carbonell said it is not if all safety measures are undertaken in all those cases recorded.
He said a hospital may be expected to register three cases of meningococcemia in a year but if the cases occurred in a span of one or two weeks, this can possibly be called an abnormal situation.
Dr. Leonard Carbonell, city health officer in Dagupan City, said he talked to the sister of the victim over the phone who said the attending physician at the Villaflor Hospital told them to bury their dead within 12 hours and prohibited them from holding a wake.
The family did what was advised them but consulted Carbonell when they saw in the death certificate that the cause of death was septicemia.
Carbonell advised the family that the attending physician did the right thing because he was not so sure it was meningococcemia that caused the death of the patient, adding that septecemia was the safest description of the disease, which means bacteria was present in the blood.
In infectious disease such as meningococcemia, the blood culture of the patient is sent to the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) in Manila for detailed laboratory analysis before a definite medical finding is ever announced.
Three other persons suspected to have died of meningococcemia were a six-year old boy from Malasiqui, and two middle-aged men from Balungao and Sta. Barbara, who all died in a private hospital in Dagupan on different dates.
Carbonell confirmed the death of the six-year old boy from Malasiqui in a private hospital based on a report relayed to him.
It was Dr. Jose Soriano, leader of the Provincial Health Team stationed in Pangasinan, meanwhile who confirmed the two suspected meningococcemia cases from Balungao and Sta. Barbara.
Soriano said it is not yet safe to say the patients died from meningococcemia because the results of the analysis of the blood culture of the patients have not yet been released by RITM.
Asked if the situation as far as meningococcemia in Pangasinan is now getting alarming, Carbonell said it is not if all safety measures are undertaken in all those cases recorded.
He said a hospital may be expected to register three cases of meningococcemia in a year but if the cases occurred in a span of one or two weeks, this can possibly be called an abnormal situation.
