Animal bite case in Iloilo seen to rise for fifth straight year

By Joseph Bernard A. Marzan

Animal bite cases in Iloilo province are like to continue rising for the fifth consecutive year since 2019, as suggested by data from the Iloilo Provincial Health Office (IPHO).

The IPHO has recorded 24,682 animal bite cases in the province so far.

Across 25 animal bite treatment centers (ABTCs), Iloilo Provincial Hospital in Pototan has the highest number at 2,105.

The other ABTCs in the top 5 with the most animal bite cases are Don Valerio Palmares Sr. Memorial District Hospital in Passi City (1,804), Rep. Pedro G. Trono Memorial District Hospital in Guimbal (1,634), Ramon Duremdes District Hospital in Dumangas (1,576), and the Ramon Tabiana Memorial District Hospital in Cabatuan (1,349).

Among dedicated ABTCs, Santa Barbara has the most cases (1,234), followed by Oton (1,151), Pavia (919), Zarraga (830), Carles (829), Alimodian (628), Miagao (624), Concepcion (577), San Joaquin (562), Lemery (488), San Dionisio (469), and Maasin (383).

The running number of cases this year is already more than half of the total recorded in 2022 (46,308), which is the highest so far compared to 2021 (40,183), 2020 (34,692), and 2019 (20,817).

Before 2019, cases were going down as indicated by figures in 2017 (35,573) and 2018 (28,499).

IPHO chief Maria Socorro Quiñon said most of the animal bites are by pet dogs.

The growing number of animal bites, according to Quiñon, is a cause of concern due to the decreasing quantity of animal bite-related vaccines in their stocks, but she declined to provide exact figures.

“The number of vaccines given by the Department of Health is gradually being depleted, and even as the Iloilo provincial government has been buying [vaccines], these have also been running out of stock,” Quiñon said.

Given that a high number of cases are caused by household pets, Quiñon said the simplest solution is responsible pet ownership.

“Our dog and cat owners need to have their pets vaccinated so that rabies would not be able to spread. Dogs also need to be either leashed or kept in their cages, so that they cannot harm our companions and visitors at home. We would not have any problems if our pet owners would be responsible. Please don’t let your pets out of your homes,” she advised.

The Iloilo Provincial Veterinary Office as of July 13 has recorded this year a total of 37 cases of rabies, which are mostly tagged to dogs.

Rabies is a human infection that is transmitted through the skin via wounds or lesions from scratches or bites, with effects including cerebral dysfunction, anxiety, confusion, agitation, and may even lead to death.