‘Antrax cases in Cagayan Valley increased in 2024’ - DOH Region 2

Tuguegarao City, Cagayan - Cases of anthrax in the Cagayan Valley increased this 2024, the Department of Health Region II reported.

Anthrax is caused by spore-forming bacteria and affects livestock or animals. A person may catch when he comes in contact with infected animals or by consuming their meat.

Infected individuals will experience fever and chills, swollen neck or lymph nodes, sore throat, painful swallowing, and hoarseness of voice, among others.

The said disease, said DOH Region 2 Nurse 3 Liezel Jampas, has infected 24 individuals in Cagayan Valley this 2024.  Said figure is higher compared to 11 cases in 2023. In 2022, there were only 13 cases.

The increase in cases came after an outbreak of the disease was documented in Barangay Matalao, Santo Nino, Cagayan from September - October this year.

In her interview with the media last Thursday, November 28, Jampas said that based on their epidemiologic investigation, 4 carabaos died from September 21 - October 7 in said barangay due to anthrax, and 239 individuals in the area were considered at risk due to their exposure to the dead animals.

The number of cases in the other provinces in the region was not mentioned by the Department.

It can be recalled that a 25-year-old in Cagayan got sick on October 8, and three days later, his father also experienced the symptoms after they butchered a suspected Anthrax-infected carabao and ate its meat.

The two were admitted to the Cagayan Valley Medical Center; fortunately, they survived the disease after it was treated immediately.

In a separate media interview, Dr. Janet Ibay, Medical Officer 4 of DOH Region 2, relayed that even though there were more cases of anthrax in the region this year, the department was able to speed up its intervention process because of the prompt reports of the concerned individuals.

The regional health department's campaign against the disease is still ongoing, and they are now communicating with the various LGUs so that they can issue an executive order for vaccinating infected animals to prevent said disease from further spreading.

The public, meanwhile, is being reminded by the agency to avoid buying or eating carabao meat in the meantime amid the spread of the disease for their own safety.