• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Fatalities due to suspected rabies in Negros Occidental went up to four as of May 25, data of the Provincial Health Office (PHO) showed.
Dr. Ma. Girlie Pinongan, provincial health officer, said on Tuesday (May 27) the latest case was a 25-year-old woman, who was bitten by a dog in Kabankalan City in March this year.
Pinongan said the woman, who has no history of rabies vaccination, died on May 25 at the Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital in Bacolod City.
The dog who had bitten her died in March, she added.
The three other cases of suspected rabies-related death included a 21-year-old woman in Cauayan, a minor in Don Salvador Benedicto, and 72-year-old man in Hinobaan.
Rabies symptoms initially present as flu-like, with fever, headache, and general malaise, and may be accompanied by tingling, prickling, or itching at the bite site.
As the disease progresses, symptoms can include anxiety, confusion, agitation, delirium, hallucinations, and difficulty swallowing, with excessive salivation and hydrophobia (fear of water) being characteristic.
The PHO called on those bitten by animals to immediately seek treatment at the nearest animal bite center.
Pinongan described as alarming the cases of rabies-related deaths in Negros Occidental. | GB
