Dr Noor Hisham said the patient’s blood and urine samples tested positive for Zika but his serious clinical condition could also be due to existing health afflictions and not primarily due to the Zika virus.
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The following States Parties provided information on microcephaly, GBS and other neurological disorders occurring in the presence of Zika virus transmission as well as control measures being implemented: Brazil, the United States of America and Singapore. Singapore is host to 180,000 Filipinos, mostly domestic workers.
Three days ago, Malaysia reported its first Zika infection – a woman living near Kuala Lumpur who contracted the virus during a visit to Singapore.
On Tuesday, the head of the CDC said federal funds to combat the Zika virus are almost exhausted and there will be no money to fight a new outbreak unless Congress approves more funding. Since the first case was discovered on August 27, new cases have been continuously reported.
The money comes on top of $16.4 million already awarded to states and territories for monitoring birth defects caused by Zika, and $5.5 million available to public health departments to respond to Zika-exposed pregnant women.
“Since the Zika virus has been detected in this country, Zika case is expected to increase further, especially if prevention activities for Aedes are not seriously taken up by the community, individuals and other relevant agencies”, the ministry said.
“As most countries do not report absolute number of Zika cases, it is not possible to make generalizations about the global trend of the Zika outbreak”, the report said. It has also stepped up health checks at its main border with Singapore, through which 200,000 people pass daily.
“WHO’s go-ahead before its expert committee meeting in October reflects the urgent need for researchers and companies to access valid reference material to diagnose Zika virus infection”, said principal investigator Sally Baylis, senior scientist at Paul-Ehrlich-Institut in Germany.
“This extraordinary event is rapidly becoming, unfortunately, an ordinary event”, Heymann said, explaining that health officials around the world should prepare for the imminent arrival of the disease spread mostly by mosquitoes, but also through sex. Ten (10) of whom live and work in Singapore, while one (1) person is working in Singapore but is residing in Johor.
Although Zika causes no symptoms in most people, it is considered particularly risky for pregnant women.
Based on this advice, the Director-General declared the continuation of the Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).
Malaysia recorded a total of 120,836 dengue cases previous year, including 336 fatalities – the most since 1995, according to government data. In a normal year, doctors expect to see just 16 such cases.
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Dr Subramanian said the Health Ministry was of the view that the patient’s death was not directly related to Zika. The virus was first identified back in 1947 and seemed relatively innocuous.
