Browsing by Author "Padilla, Lester Wallen T."

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Publication
    Epidemiology of dog bite cases in La Union
    (Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University - North La Union Campus, 2010-03) Padilla, Lester Wallen T.
    This study was conducted to: (1) describe the profile of patient presented to health centers with dog bite injuries in La Union; (2) describe post exposure prophylaxis practices in La Union; (3) ascertain various epidemiological risk factors associated with dog bite cases; (4) determine the extent of problem of dog bite in La Union; and (5) determine the incidence of medical consultations due to dog bite. The study made use of the descriptive research design which utilized data sheet as tool in gathering data. It was carried out in health centers/hospitals in all towns of La Union. Ten (10) percent or 935 of the total dog bite victims that were hospital treated from each town were interviewed. Data from dog bite cases that were treated in the health centers and hospitals was summarized from 2002 to 2007 through medical record review. Dog bite incidences in the different towns of La Union, age, sex and other data of dog bite patients were collected from hospitals and health centers. Breeds, size and age of dog, details of the vaccination course given, dog-victim interaction, location of wounds and severity, and post-exposure treatment (PET) were tabulated. There were 935 respondents covered in La Union. Most of the dog bite victims (80%) came from age group 14 and above. Majority of the victims were male (64.13) and (58.99%) were single. Most of the respondents were college level (41.28%) and a small percentage was recorded for high school level at 23.1 percent. With regards to the monthly family income, most (34.58%) of the victims came from Php 10,001 – Php 20,000 income bracket. A small percentage (13.69) of those surveyed came from the group with a family income of less than Php 5,000. Almost all of the respondents washed their wound with soap and water after being bitten, some applied garlic, chili and papaya and disinfectants on the wound and some practiced “Tandok” before going to hospital/ health centers for treatment. As to the victims, 27.30 percent were given three doses of human anti-rabies vaccine; 19.49 and 8.13 percent were administered with doses of 4 and 5 respectively. A small percentage was able to complete the required dose. Four or five doses are needed to complete the rabies post-exposure treatment. Neighbour’s dog (69.38%) were recorded the most dogs that bites the victim in La Union wherein it was claimed that they were provoked (95.18%) and most of them were unleashed which stood at 58.78 percent. Adult dog has the highest number dealing with bite. Most of the dogs that attacked were female (62.42%) wherein of all the female dog (79.59%) were currently nursing its puppies. People’s homes dominated the survey with over a 64.99 percent and parks were at a minority of 0.64 percent. Most dogs responsible for the bite were mongrels which stood at 97.64 percent. Other breeds were Rottweiler, German Shepherd, Chow Chow, Pitbull, Shih Tzu, Chihuahua and Miniature Pinscher. More than half of the victims claimed that the dog attacked were not vaccinated and a great number of the dogs were unneutered. Majority of the dog (97.54%) were healthy and not one of the victims claimed that the dogs that bite were sick. More than 80 percent of the respondents did not subject the dog’s head for rabies examination. Very few respondents were bitten in the face and the body while majority 70.34 percent were bitten in the leg. Most of the victims (87.15%) received only small bite and were bitten only once. Based on the number of dog bite inflicted to the victims, a large number received only one dog bite (93.25%) at one time and 0.54 percent of the victims got three dog bites. The number of dog bite cases went up from 2002 to 2007. Although the City of San Fernando had the highest number of dog bites (3371) for the past 6 years, Aringay recorded 763 percent in terms of the increase of dog bite from 2002 to 2007 and the town of Balaoan recorded 10 percent increase. The City of San Fernando recorded the worst in terms of per capita cases of dog bite for 2007 with a 0.7 percentage. This means that for every 1000 people in San Fernando, 7 of them were victims of dog bite and the lowest per capita dog bite record of 0.06 percent was accomplished by the town of Bagulin. A 0.41 percent (38/9348) of deaths due to dog bite was recorded from 2002-2007 in relation to the total number of dog bites. A good majority of the respondents or about 78.29 percent spent less Php 1000 for their treatment and 4.92 percent spent more than Php 3000.