Zika is a virus transmitted by the bite of an infected Aedes mosquito, which can also carry dengue and chikungunya viruses. - AFP
SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/Asia News Network): Another two Zika cases have been reported in Singapore, taking the total number of cases detected here in 2023 to five.
Giving the update in a Facebook post on Thursday (May 18) night, the National Environment Agency (NEA) said the cluster involving people who live or work in Kovan has grown to four.
It did not provide more details of how and where the remaining case was detected.
Zika is a virus transmitted by the bite of an infected Aedes mosquito, which can also carry dengue and chikungunya viruses.
Those infected with the Zika virus can experience symptoms including fever, rash and joint pain within three to 14 days of being bitten. Most Zika patients, however, do not develop symptoms.
In 2022, two Zika cases were reported in Singapore after a lull since March 2020.
The first case of 2023 surfaced in late April, according to NEA’s website.
The cluster in Kovan was announced by the Ministry of Health (MOH) and NEA on May 12.
The authorities said then that doctors had been alerted to be vigilant and to test for Zika among patients with clinically compatible symptoms, especially for people living or working in the Kovan area.
Residents in Kovan, especially pregnant women, were also told to monitor their health and seek medical attention if unwell with Zika symptoms. They should also tell their doctors where they live and work.
The authorities noted that despite precautionary control measures, they cannot rule out the possibility of further cases as most infected persons may display mild or no symptoms.
None of the three cases identified last week were pregnant women, whose infants are at risk of developing genetic abnormalities such as microcephaly as a result of the virus.
The first locally transmitted Zika case in Singapore was reported in August 2016 after the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the virus a public health emergency earlier that year.
Between August and November 2016, a total of 455 cases of the Zika virus infection were confirmed in Singapore.
To date, 86 countries and territories have reported evidence of mosquito-transmitted Zika infection since Brazil reported a large outbreak of the virus infection in 2015.
Development of a Zika vaccine remains an active area of research, according to WHO’s website.
