The latest reports claim that the death toll in Philippines due to dengue has risen drastically. As per the figures, the number of deaths recorded due to dengue fever has reached 534 up till now.

As per the Department of Education, a total of 118 deaths of school children have been recorded.

The officials claimed on Wednesday that the rise in the cases is as much as 40%, as against the last year.

The Department of Health divulged that as many as 383 people had died in the previous year between January 1 and September 4.

Dengue is the most infectious tropical fever that causes severe joint pains. The health experts claim that the symptoms of the disease include loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting and general weakness.

Responding to the sharp rise in the dengue deaths, Doctor Eric Tayag, Director of the Health Department's National Epidemiology Centre, claimed that there was a decline in the new infections as an intense mosquito control drive was in line.

However, he emphasized that all the communities should be vigil and ensure that clean-up drives should be carried so as to remove the breeding grounds for the mosquitoes, since they are the carries of the dengue virus.

Further, the total number of cases recorded on September 4 by the Department stood at 77,012, which was almost double than the figure of 36,887 recorded in the previous period for the same period.