Pedestrians wade through floodwaters along España Boulevard in Manila following heavy rains brought by the southwest monsoon or habagat on August 17, 2026. Daniel Jacob, ABS-CBN News/File
MANILA — Leptospirosis cases in Manila have breached the epidemic threshold, which means infections in the city have exceeded the expected number of cases for a specific period, the Manila City Health Office said on Monday.
Local health authorities have so far logged nearly 1,000 cases of leptospirosis this year, Manila City health officer Grace Padilla told ABS-CBN News.
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Manila has been observing high cases of leptospirosis in the past two weeks and that it "surpassed" the epidemic threshold for the vector-borne disease, Padilla said.
The city, she added, now has a "high" attack rate of three.
In epidemiology, attack rate refers to the proportion of individuals who contract a disease in a population initially free of the ailment.
Medical consultations and admissions related to leptospirosis are expected to continue given the hundreds, if not thousands, of Manila residents exposed to floodwaters in the last days of August, Padilla said.
Hospitals in Manila are already "fully capacitated" due to the rising number of leptospirosis cases, she said, adding that some increased their bed capacity to respond to the "surge" of infections.
Post-exposure prohyplaxis against leptospirosis is available in 44 health centers across the city.
'SEVERAL NCR CITIES CROSS THRESHOLDS'
Marc Steven Capungcol, chief of the health agency's emergency management bureau, last week said "several" cities in Metro Manila had "repeatedly crossed their epidemic thresholds" for leptospirosis.
Metro Manila logged at least 1,961 cases of the bacterial disease, Capungcol said, adding that Manila and Quezon City had the "highest cumulative number of cases" followed by Caloocan and Taguig.
In the Philippines, leptospirosis is usually contracted following exposure to floods contaminated with urine from infected animals like rats.
It can be prevented or treated using antibiotics like doxycycline prescribed by a doctor.
Individuals who had exposure to potentially contaminated floods and experiencing fever, muscle and joint pains and headaches are advised to consult a physician.
Experts continue to remind the public not to take leptospirosis for granted as it has already claimed hundreds of lives for this year alone.
From January to August 29, the health department's epidemiology bureau tallied at least 6,253 leptospirosis cases nationwide with 378 deaths.
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