UNDER THE MICROSCOPE The Philippines has one of the highest hepatitis B (HBV) burdens in the world, with 16.7 percent of Filipinos positive for the virus with over 7.27 million affected. It means we are a hyperendemic country for HBV. Another 40 percent have serological markers (anti-HBs and...
UNDER THE MICROSCOPE Around two weeks ago, the Department of Health issued a health warning re unhealthy air quality due to the April 10 fire at the Navotas landfill. The haze (fine smoke and dust particles) can produce symptoms such as difficulty in breathing, coughing, chest pain, eye irritation...
UNDER THE MICROSCOPE The Philippine Society of Pathologists Inc. just concluded its 75th Annual Convention at the Makati Shangrila Hotel. Being a member of its board of governors, I was busy with the planning and of course, attended the convention. If you don’t know what a pathologist is, let me...
UNDER THE MICROSCOPE With the US-Iran war still ongoing, the world watches with bated breath as to the eventual outcome. However, the world economy has suffered setbacks that will definitely see a real risk of stagflation. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the bombing of oil refineries has...
UNDER THE MICROSCOPE With the bill granting the president emergency powers regarding the energy crisis already passed, the president should not just reduce the excise tax on fuels. Rather, he should totally remove it, even temporarily, to give the people some breathing space amid the tightening...
UNDER THE MICROSCOPE In many countries, most people don’t drive cars. They take mass transport that is efficient, clean and runs on time. Before the Second World War, Manila had the tramvia, an electrified bus running along defined routes, attached to an overhead cable from which it draws power....
UNDER THE MICROSCOPE The past two weeks had been very eventful. There was the shock of the death of Pope Francis. Although I’d like to write about the pope, everyone seemed to have written about him that there isn’t anything new I can say about him that I haven’t read in newspapers,...
UNDER THE MICROSCOPE For the past 20 years or so, we haven’t joined the mad rush during Holy Week when people drive or fly out of Metro Manila like lemmings jumping off a cliff. What’s the point of going to Baguio for a change when you’ll encounter the same gang of folks from the city...
UNDER THE MICROSCOPE Never did I imagine I would have the privilege and honor to have a classmate who surpassed the expectations of not just myself but the University of the Philippines as well. I have known Francisco Sy since our pre-med days as an affable, mild-mannered scholarly type. We...
UNDER THE MICROSCOPE Two incidents in the past week highlighted the issue of road rage, which is increasingly common. A viral video showed an SUV driver in fisticuffs with three motorcycle riders, and being outnumbered, drew his gun and fired at the assailants. He hit all three and also...
UNDER THE MICROSCOPE Many of us spend a lot of time on their gadgets-phones, laptops, or desktops, for communication, entertainment, information, news and most importantly, for a living, since a lot of us work online from home. Ever since the Covid-19 pandemic, we have been increasingly...
UNDER THE MICROSCOPE What a week it had been. The Duterte saga has captivated the attention, not just of Filipinos, but of the world as well. The arrest of the former Philippine president for crimes against humanity was on international news networks, which didn’t do any good for the image...
