By: Charles Nikko Limon
La Trinidad, Benguet has confirmed its first case of mpox, while Baguio City has now recorded a total of seven confirmed cases.
Following reports of new mpox infections in the Visayas and Mindanao, many residents have expressed concern that the number of cases may continue to rise.
“I always carry alcohol and wear a facemask,” said Bong Villanueva, a local resident. “You also need to wear a jacket so you don’t get infected.”
Baguio City recorded its first mpox case back in January.
Five months later, that number has risen to seven confirmed cases.
“There were a total of 22 suspected cases previously,” said Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong. “Out of those, only seven were confirmed.”
According to the city government, all seven patients have recovered.
Most of the confirmed cases were identified through contact tracing.
Now, authorities are monitoring another possible case, following the confirmation of the first mpox case in La Trinidad, Benguet.
“The new active case is from La Trinidad, although the person works here in Baguio City,” Mayor Magalong explained. “Basically, they just move between Baguio and the Benguet area.”
Although the patient works and rents a place in Baguio City, the case is being attributed to La Trinidad since that is the person’s place of residence.
“For now, there are no active mpox cases in the city of Baguio,” Magalong added.
The gender and age of the La Trinidad patient have not yet been disclosed.
The Baguio City Government will be assisting La Trinidad officials in conducting contact tracing.
Officials from the La Trinidad municipal government have declined to issue a statement as they continue to verify the details of the case.
Meanwhile, the Department of Health (DOH) clarified over the weekend that the circulating rumors about a national lockdown due to mpox are false.
“Lockdown does not work for mpox,” said Health Secretary Dr. Teodoro Herbosa. “Why? Because it’s transmitted through skin-to-skin contact. If you impose a lockdown, that kind of contact might actually increase.”
As of this writing, the DOH reports a total of 911 mpox cases across the country.
However, all confirmed cases are of the Clade II type, and the more dangerous Clade I strain has not been detected in the Philippines.
“These are data we’ve seen throughout the years since mpox was first recorded,” said Dr. Maria Escarnita Limpin of the Philippine Medical Association. “The experts know what the real concern is.”
The DOH has already released an official advisory to counter the misinformation, reiterating that monkeypox is not airborne and that a lockdown is not necessary.
The agency is urging the public to follow only legitimate DOH social media pages for updates.
The department has also reported to the DICT a Facebook page that falsely claimed an impending lockdown, requesting for it to be taken down immediately.
