Leptospirosis cases in Metro Manila reach over 700

From the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

More than 700 cases of leptospirosis have been reported in four government hospitals with more people suspected of having contracted the potentially fatal disease coming in every day.

Of the total number of cases, there were 39 fatalities.

Leptospirosis is a bacterial infection caused by exposure to the urine of rats and other animals in floodwaters.

The incubation period before the appearance of symptoms has been observed to be as early as two days within exposure or as late as 21 days after.

Doctors advised those who waded through floodwaters who experience flu-like symptoms such as fever and muscle pain to immediately seek medical attention.

Other common symptoms include redness of the eyes, vomiting, headache, jaundice and difficulty in urinating. Severe cases of the disease can result in kidney failure and liver and brain involvement that may lead to death.

Treatment involves antibiotics which should be prescribed by a physician. To avoid complications, the disease should be diagnosed early and treated immediately.

In Pasig, the city government has poured several drums of chlorine into stagnant, dirty floodwaters in low-lying barangays to prevent the spread of diseases, including leptospirosis, which has downed a few dozen residents since Ondoy.

The chlorine treatment is not meant to clean the floodwaters, but only to make it less murky and to reduce the concentration of disease-causing bacteria, Mayor Robert Eusebio said.

I've said it time and again, somebody has to teach these people not to swim in flood waters. I know that you can't prevent people from wading through flood waters. But some of these people, mostly kids actually swim in it.

The local government should teach people about the dangers of wading through flood water and how to eliminate it right away.