Foreign Property News | Posted by Aye Myat Thu
Singapore's tally of dengue cases this year reached a record 22,403 on Wednesday (Aug 5), the highest recorded in a single year.
With nearly five months to go before the end of the year, the number of dengue cases has surpassed the 22,170 recorded in 2013, which was the previous largest dengue outbreak in Singapore.
In all, 20 people have died from dengue this year as of Aug 2, said the Ministry of Health (MOH). The youngest victim was 25 years old, while the oldest was 92 years old.
Eighteen of the victims had worked or lived in active dengue clusters. MOH declined to provide details on the victims or the dengue clusters they had worked or lived in.
The ministry said that about 0.2 per cent of the dengue patients this year developed dengue haemorrhagic fever, a more severe form of dengue that can be fatal. The proportion of dengue haemorrhagic fever cases has ranged between 0.1 and 0.8 per cent in the past 10 years.
“Although most dengue patients recover from the infection, elderly patients and those with concurrent medical conditions are at higher risk of developing complications. We urge persons with symptoms suggestive of dengue to see a medical practitioner for timely diagnosis and management,” said MOH.
Singapore has reported more than 1,000 dengue cases a week for eight consecutive weeks. Last week, the National Environment Agency (NEA) reported 1,380 dengue cases, down slightly from the weekly high this year of 1,792 cases for the week ending Jul 25.
Before this year, the highest number of dengue cases recorded in a week was 891 in 2014.
Ref: todayonline
