Singapore’s health authorities have confirmed the country’s first imported case of monkeypox since 2019, joining at least 42 countries that have reported such infections this year.

The virus was detected in a 42-year-old male British flight attendant who tested positive on June 20 and is currently in stable condition at the country’s National Center for Infectious Diseases, the country’s health ministry said in a statement late Tuesday. The city-state last confirmed an imported case of monkeypox in May 2019.

A recent resurgence of the viral disease, which typically leads to symptoms such as fever and rash, has led to more than 2,100 cases being found across the globe as of mid-June, according to data from the World Health Organization. The majority of cases have been reported in Europe, with cases also cropping up in Australia and the US.

In Singapore, contact tracing is ongoing and 13 close contacts have been identified, the health ministry said. All close contacts will be placed on quarantine for 21 days since their last interaction with the infected man. The risk of transmission to visitors of locations where the man has went -- including a massage outlet and food establishments -- is low, it added.

Transmission of monkeypox typically requires direct contact with bodily fluids, infectious sores, or contaminated material, according to the WHO. Symptoms usually last two to four weeks, although some severe cases can prove fatal.

Source:
courtesy of BLOOMBERG

by Low De Wei and Melissa Cheok

If you have any stories or news that you would like to share with the global online community, please feel free to share it with us by contacting us directly at [email protected]