National Environment Agency (NEA) stated that the number of dengue cases diagnosed from 21 to 27 August has increased from the previous week as it reached 274 cases from 222 cases last week.
Since the start of the year, NEA has reported 11,053 dengue cases in Singapore. The Ministry of Health (MOH) warned that the number of cases this year may have reached more than 30,000 cases, almost double the number of 11,286 cases reported in 2015. This means that this year will be marked as the highest cases report in history, exceeding 22,170 cases reported in 2013, based on the speed of infections in the start of the year.
From 28 to 29 August at 3 pm, 50 cases of the mosquito-borne virus have been reported.
Last year, 4 people died due to dengue fever. As from the start of the year, 7 people have died, the last case was a 79-year-old man who was hospitalised at the Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital (MENH).
NEA states that there are 58 active dengue clusters in Singapore, higher than 48 clusters declared last week, including 10 classified as high-risk. The biggest cluster, where 60 cases have been reported, is in the area around Tampines Ave 8, Tampines Street 81, Street 83 and Street 84.
There are several symptoms for dengue virus which usually begins 4 to 6 days after the infection and ends in about 10 days :
- Sudden, high fever
- Severe headaches
- Pain behind the eyes
- Severe joint and muscle pain
- Fatigue
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Skin rash, which appears two to five days after the onset of fever
- Mild bleeding (such a nose bleed, bleeding gums, or easy bruising
There are times, symptoms are mild and can be mistaken for those of the flu or another viral infection. Younger children and people who have never had the infection before tend to have milder cases than older children and adults.
However, serious problems can develop which is called Dengue Shock Syndrome (DSS). These include dengue hemorrhagic fever, a rare complication characterised by high fever, damage to lymph and blood vessels, bleeding from the nose and gums, enlargement of the liver, and failure of the circulatory system. The symptoms may progress to massive bleeding, shock, and death.
There are some preventive action launched by the government according to the classified areas, which are
Last Saturday (27 August), the first locally transmitted case of the Zika virus were reported in Singapore. Another 55 Zika cases have surfaced since then, and the authorities warn of more to come.
