Two men, one local and one from Estonia, were the two latest cases of the world’s latest disease scare monkeypox, the Ministry of Health announced yesterday.
Both the 46-year-old Estonian, who entered the city-state Thursday from London, and the 26-year-old local tested positive yesterday, bringing the total known cases to eight so far – four imported and four local.
The Ministry of Health said both men developed rashes in the groin area while the Estonian man also had a fever and swollen lymph nodes. Both were admitted to the National Centre for Infectious Diseases the same day they sought medical help and were in stable condition today.
The men, who were not identified, were not linked to any other known cases. Contact tracing is ongoing.
Singapore recorded its first monkeypox infection on Jun. 21 in a 42-year-old male Brit who flew into the country as a flight attendant.
Thailand today was scrambling to find out who might have been infected by its first known patient, a Nigerian man who fled quarantine on the resort island of Phuket and escaped to Cambodia.
The World Health Organization declared monkeypox a global health emergency on Saturday but Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said today that the ministry does not recommend vaccinating the population against monkeypox because of its “severe side effects.”
Instead, citizens should exercise their own responsibility by washing their hands frequently and avoid touching any scabs from anyone or any animal.
Symptoms include fever, headache, muscle ache, backache, swollen lymph nodes, chills, lethargy, and skin rash.
Transmission occurs through exposure to respiratory droplets or direct physical contact with the blood, body fluid or lesion material from the infected. One remains infected until their blisters scab over. The first major study of the disease found it has so far overwhelmingly infected men who had sex with other men.
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