Vaikundarajan On Zika Outbreak In Singapore Last Tuesday, Singapore registered 82 cases of Zika virus. “The virus came into effect last year majorly in Americas and Caribbean. It is severe risk to pregnant women. A pregnant woman suffering from Zika may give birth to a child with abnormally small heads and underdeveloped brains,” informs Vaikundarajan.
The city-state has offered free Zika test to pregnant women. Singapore is one of the most popular tourism locations in the world. With the outbreak of Zika virus, countries like America, Australia and Taiwan have insisted their citizens to avoid any trip to the city-state. “The first case was detected last weekend. However, there is good news. While the number of cases has grown, at least 3 dozen patients have recovered fully since then,” says Vaikundarajan. The outbreak has caused neighbouring Malaysia and Indonesia to take protective measures. Residents of Singapore have requested the government to take extreme measures to curb any further cases. The details of those infected from foreign countries have been kept under the wrap. The embassies of China, India, Sri Lanka and Myanmar have not been notified by Singapore if their citizens have been infected.
“Zika was discovered in 1947 in Uganda. According to WHO, it caused human infections between 1960 to 1980 across Africa and Asia. WHO has declared Zika a global health emergency,� says Vaikundarajan.