The Health Ministry has detected the first locally-transmitted case of Zika virus in the country in Sabah yesterday.
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“On Aug 31, the patient had sought further treatment at Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) 2 when he experienced worsening fever, muscle aches and diarrhea”, he said in a statement today.
He had complained of a fever on August 27 and received initial medical treatment at the Luyang Health Clinic on August 30 before being transferred to the bigger government hospital in Kota Kinabalu.
“He had other co-morbid conditions such as high blood pressure, chronic kidney disease, kidney stones and gout”.
According to health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah, the 61-year-old man from Taman Public Jaya in Likas passed away at 5.30pm. “The full result of investigations on his cause of death is still pending”, Hisham said. Officials in the city-state reported the first locally transmitted infection on Saturday and said on Wednesday the number had jumped to 115.
The patient, whose blood and urine samples tested positive for Zika, did not travel overseas recently and was probably bitten by Aedes mosquito infected with Zika, the ministry said.
The statement came just two days after Malaysia reported the first Zika case on its soil – a 58-year-old woman who is believed to have contracted it on a visit to neighbouring Singapore, where 150 cases have been confirmed.
“Zika cases are expected to increase further (in Malaysia), especially if prevention activities for Aedes are not seriously taken up by the community, individuals and other relevant agencies”, the health ministry statement said.
But pregnant women who catch it can give birth to babies with microcephaly, a deformation marked by abnormally small brains and heads.
“Latest updates from Singapore’s Health Ministry showed that overall, 11 Malaysians have been confirmed to be infected with the Zika virus in the republic”, he said.
In adults, Zika infections have also been linked to a rare neurological syndrome known as Guillain-Barre, as well as other neurological disorders.
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He stressed that Zika only “causes mild symptoms and signs, not death”.
