Zika virus: Singapore confirms 41 locally transmitted cases
Singapore has confirmed 41 cases of locally-transmitted Zika virus, mostly among foreign construction workers, and said it expected more cases to be identified.
All but seven of those infected have fully recovered, the health ministry and the National Environment Agency (NEA) said in a joint statement on Sunday. Those seven remain in hospital.
On Saturday, authorities had confirmed a 47-year-old Malaysian woman living in southeastern Singapore as the city-state’s first case of a local transmission of the virus – which in Brazil has been linked to a rare birth defect.
The authorities said they tested 124 people, primarily foreign construction workers employed on a site in the same part of Singapore. That site has been ordered to halt work, and workers’ dormitories are being inspected. Seventy-eight people tested negative and five cases were pending. Thirty-four patients had fully recovered.
Singapore declared its first imported Zika case in May, a 48-year-old local who had travelled to Brazil, where the outbreak started.
On Saturday, it announced that a 37-year-old Malaysian woman had contracted the virus locally. She is the only confirmed female case so far.
Singapore declared its first imported Zika case in May, a 48-year-old local who had travelled to Brazil, where the outbreak started.
On Saturday, it announced that a 37-year-old Malaysian woman had contracted the virus locally. She is the only confirmed female case so far.
