The Philippines' Department of Health (DOH) said on Thursday that the number of dengue cases recorded from Jan 1 to May 21 this year is 23 per cent higher than the cases recorded in the same period last year.
The DOH tallied 34,938 dengue cases during this period, and 180 people have died from the mosquito-borne disease.
According to the DOH, 10 of the country's 17 regions showed increasing cases. It added that the Central Visayas region in the central Philippines recorded the highest number of cases with 4,544, followed by the Central Luzon region and the Zamboanga Peninsula in the southern Philippines.
Mosquito-borne infectious diseases, including dengue, usually peak at the start of the rainy season from July to October due to fluctuating weather conditions, flooding, and accumulation of contaminated water.
Dengue can cause joint pain, nausea, vomiting, rashes, breathing problems, haemorrhaging, and organ failure in severe cases.
The Philippines declared a "national dengue epidemic" in August 2019 due to a surge in the death toll.
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