Pharmaceutical Business review

Singapore confirms eight pregnant women among 329 Zika infected

The government confirmed 11 new cases of the locally-transmitted virus including one case linked to the Elite Terrace cluster.

The other ten cases have no known links to any existing cluster, MOH said.

The Ministry of Health and National Environment Agency said in a joint statement that the doctors are providing close support and counseling for the patients.

According to a new study, the Zika virus, which is known to affect unborn babies, may also damage adult brain cells.

The Zika virus has also been linked to Guillain-Barré syndrome, a rare condition in which the immune system attacks parts of the nervous system, resulting in muscle weakness or paralysis.

Meanwhile, the NEA is accelerating its vector control efforts to wider areas.

The Zika virus, which is spread to people through mosquito bites, was declared an international public health emergency by the World Health Organization.

NEA said that a total of 202 breeding habitats were identified and destroyed in the cluster areas.

Singapore Minister for Health Gan Kim Yong earlier said: “Over time, we expect Zika cases to emerge from more areas.

“We must work and plan on the basis that there is Zika transmission in other parts of Singapore and extend our vector control efforts beyond the current affected areas.”