Over 900 stricken with typhoid in Philippine city

Channel NewsAsia 3 Mar 08;

MANILA : More than 900 people have been stricken with typhoid in a city just south of the Philippine capital Manila, a Red Cross official said on Monday.

The number could rise further as officials in Calamba city in Laguna province continue to track down the source of the disease, provincial Red Cross administrator Rutelly Cabutin told AFP.

"As of 5:00 pm today (0900 GMT), we have confirmed 903 cases. This includes those still in the hospital and those discharged," Cabutin said.

"It is quite alarming because the disease was not confined to one village, but is spread out in 18 villages. There could still be other undiagnosed cases," she said. "If the source can be immediately detected it can be stopped, but if it remains unknown, the number could increase."

The outbreak started last month but the cases have quickly piled up over the past two weeks, she said, adding that some 5,000 residents in 18 villages have sought medical help from the local government.

Health department officials in Manila were not immediately available to comment, but Cabutin said the local district water authority was testing samples.

She said only the health department in Manila can officially declare an outbreak, but local news reports have said hospitals in the area were having a hard time coping and that medical supplies were running out. - AFP/de

1,200 in Philippine city down with typhoid
Straits Times 6 Mar 08;

CALAMBA (PHILIPPINES) - THE Philippine government rushed medical aid to a city south of the capital Manila yesterday where an outbreak of typhoid has seen more than 1,200 people admitted to hospital, officials said.

'This is an outbreak and every outbreak is alarming,' Health Secretary Francisco Duque told reporters.

He said the government had established a coordinating centre in Calamba 60km south of Manila and was sending medical teams and aid to help local workers who were struggling to cope with the outbreak.

At the overcrowded JP Rizal Memorial District Hospital in the city, sick children in soiled nappies and on intravenous drips spilled into hallways from overcrowded wards, many in makeshift cots.

The first person showing symptoms of typhoid was taken to hospital on Feb 21 but more than 200 patients have been admitted since Monday.

Ms Maxima Balanes, 35, lay beside her twin toddlers Genely and Ashley on the floor of the hospital. All were hooked to IV drips and too weak to move.

'I think we got it from the water we drank,' she said, adding that one of her older children was also sick but had been discharged.

Nearby, another young patient, seven-year-old Lika Rose Sadicon, held on tightly to her plastic doll while propped on a small plastic chair, her eyes welling with tears.

Mr Duque said the latest field bulletin showed that 1,262 people had been rushed to hospitals with various typhoid-like symptoms.

Of the total, 27 cases were confirmed, while blood culture tests were being carried out on the others.

City officials in Calamba have so far not traced the source of the bacteria, Mr Duque said.

Most residents suspect contaminated drinking water as the source, but tests carried out by city officials have 'yielded negative results', the Health Secretary said.

'It is very important now for the short term for everybody in Calamba to boil their water,' he said, adding that medical staff had distributed chlorine tablets to add to drinking water.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

Doctors struggling to cope with typhoid fever outbreak in Philippine city
Channel NewsAsia 7 Mar 08;

CALAMBA CITY, Philippines : Philippine authorities fear a shortage of medical resources in Calamba City which has been hit by a typhoid fever outbreak.

Doctors at JP Rizal Memorial Hospital in the Philippine city of Calamba are struggling to cope with the outbreak of typhoid fever.

With the sudden upsurge of patients, health officials said they are running out of medicines and medical supplies.

More than 1,400 residents have displayed symptoms of the disease in less than a month, prompting authorities to declare a state of calamity.

The normal maximum capacity for patients at the hospital is just enough for 50 patients, but it has increased to 180 patients, just trying to find their own space in the cramped hospital.

So far, 13 villages around Calamba have been hit.

Dr Dennis Labro, Calamba City Health Office, said, "We were caught by surprise. There are still new cases coming in, so medicines are still a big problem. Not only the space and the beds in the hospital, but the medicines as well."

Dr Natividad Ocampo, JP Rizal Memorial Hospital, said, "We were caught off guard because the patients just kept coming. We didn't know what caused the illness. We now have a 300 percent admission rate or more."

That is why sick children have to settle for makeshift beds on the floor in this small government hospital.

Leah Medallion, whose two-year-old son has typhoid, said, "It's hard for the children because it's very cold at night. Our situation here is really miserable."

Renalyn Dimayuga said she had to fight for a small bench for her three-year-old daughter to sleep on.

She said, "We have been staying here for three days. It's a good thing she is sleeping on this bench instead of sleeping on the floor."

Residents suspect the salmonella bacteria which caused the outbreak spread through contaminated drinking water.

However so far, water tests carried out by city officials have yielded negative results.

Additional tests are being done on the city's water basin to determine the source of the typhoid outbreak. - CNA/ms