news desk Laugh
South Cotabato health officials reported a case of filariasis at a remote site in Koronadal City.
An individual in Sitio El Lalam, Barangay Assumption tested positive for the filariasis parasite in a nocturnal blood smear conducted among 38 residents of the sub-village on Friday, 20 January. The patient is being treated.
Teams from the Integrated Regional Health Office (IPHO) and the City Health Office conducted immediate case-finding follow-up and expanded nocturnal blood smearing in the district and nearby settings; No other person has tested positive for the parasite.
Indoor residual spraying is also taking place in all homes, initially in Sitio El Lalam, as well as vector mapping to determine the presence of mosquito species that carry the filariasis parasite.
South Cotabato was declared free of filariasis in November 2017 after the district recorded near zero prevalence in a five-year period.
Lymphatic filariasis is a parasitic disease transmitted by mosquitoes that can affect the lymphatic system and lead to abnormal enlargement of body parts (lymphedema (swelling of tissues) or elephantiasis (thickening of skin/tissue) in the extremities and, in men, hydrocele (swelling). The scrotum can cause pain, permanent disfigurement, and severe disability, often resulting in people losing their strength and suffering from stigma, anxiety, and depression.
