Why is Zika surging in Singapore?
The Zika virus is on a rampage in Singapore, with 115 locally-transmitted cases — including the first pregnant woman — confirmed late Wednesday by the country’s Ministry of Health (MOH).
“Over time, we expect Zika cases to emerge from more areas,” said Singaporean Minister for Health Gan Kim Yong, in a statement released Wednesday.
But why is Zika spreading so fast in the city state?
“The proportion of our population that are immune to the Zika virus is likely to be low in Singapore and if you don’t have the immunity to provide the roadblocks, then it’s likely that the virus will spread fast,” Eng Eong Ooi, the deputy director of the Emerging Infectious Disease program at Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore, told CNN.
The majority of reported cases are among foreign construction workers based in the residential Aljunied Crescent neighborhood in Singapore. Though cases were limited to this area on Monday, by late Tuesday the MOH reported 26 new cases that showed how the Zika virus had spread to nearby residential areas.
On Wednesday, the MOH said that the new confirmed cases were from the Aljunied and Sims Drive neighborhoods as well as the Kallang Way and Payar Lebar areas.
All confirmed cases have been admitted to hospitals where they will stay until they have tested negative for the virus.
On Thursday, Malaysia’s Ministry of Health also confirmed its first case of Zika infection in a 58-year-old woman, who had visited her daughter in Singapore on August 19 and returned to Malaysia on August 21.
While Malaysia and Indonesia announced they would be implementing additional passenger screening procedures at its airports, foreign ministries in the US, Australia, Taiwan and South Korea have all issued alerts, advising pregnant women against traveling to Singapore.
Singapore is known to suffer widely from dengue virus, a mosquito-borne tropical disease that triggers high fevers, headaches, vomiting and skin rashes in those infected.
In 2016, the MOH announced that it expected as many as 30,000 cases in the country.
Ooi explained that the Zika virus’ rapid spread in Singapore was likely down to its similarities with the dengue virus.
“Zika is very closely related to dengue. It has all the genetic traits that would allow it to spread where dengue thrives — the virus can infect and spread through the same Aedes aegypti mosquitoes that spread dengue virus,” said Ooi.
With its 5.7 million-strong population packed mostly in crowded urban areas, containing Zika’s spread in Singapore is a challenge.
“In Singapore, many people live in densely packed apartment blocks so it’s easy for high numbers of people to get infected even if there are only a few mosquitoes flying around,” explained Ooi.
Want to send us a story? SMS to 25170 or WhatsApp 0743570000 or Submit on Citizen Digital or email wananchi@royalmedia.co.ke
Comments
No comments yet.
Leave a Comment