A 10-year-old elementary pupil from Manila died due to suspected case of diphtheria, a highly communicable bacterial infection affecting the nose and throat.
According to Josefina de Guzman, school nurse of Jacinto Zamora Elementary School, the Grade 4 pupil had fever last Sept. 13, the last day she attended classes.
De Guzman said the pupil had rashes and mouth sores, and passed away on Sept. 20, hours after she was clinically diagnosed with diphtheria.
According to the nurse, the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine in Muntinlupa City is still conducting laboratory tests to verify the clinical diagnosis.
The results may be released in a week.
There are more than 2,300 pupils at Jacinto Zamora Elementary School.
De Guzman said some pupils have not attended their classes after the incident.
“Maybe some students and parents were not educated enough about this disease,” De Guzman said.
De Guzman said they have disinfected the school premises and those who had close contact with the suspected diphtheria patient were given prophylactic treatment. (Erma Edera)
