Chikungunya Fever Cases Detected At Clive Street

17 Jan 2008

1          The Ministry of Health (MOH) has been notified of a case of chikungunya fever in a 27-year-old foreign national on 14 January 2008. Investigations revealed that this was likely a case of local transmission of chikungunya fever as he has not travelled out of Singapore for several months.

2          All previous cases of chikungunya reported in Singapore were imported i.e. the infection was contracted overseas. 10 cases of chikungunya fever were notified to MOH in 2007.

Chikungunya Fever

3          Chikungunya fever is an acute viral disease caused by the chikungunya virus. The disease is characterised by sudden onset of fever, chills, headache, nausea, vomiting, joint pain with or without swelling and low back pain. Some patients may develop a rash affecting the body and limbs. The illness is usually self-limiting. There is no specific treatment. Most symptoms lasts for 3-10 days but joint pains may last for weeks to months. It is transmitted in the same way as dengue fever by the same mosquito vector (Aedesaegypti and Aedesalbopictus). 

4          The disease is found in many tropical countries. Outbreaks have occurred in recent years in Africa, Southeast Asia, South Asia (e.g. India and Sri Lanka), and the Indian Ocean islands. Closer to home, outbreaks were also reported in Malaysia and Indonesia in 2006. Imported cases of chikungunya fever have also been reported in Europe, US, South America and Asia amongst travellers returning from chikungunya fever affected areas.

Situation in Singapore

5          Following the report on the above patient with chikungunya fever, MOH together with National Environment Agency (NEA)’s Environmental Health Institute, has begun to screen persons living or working in the Clive Street area where the patient resided. So far, investigations have found five other persons with chikungunya fever. They have been sent to theCommunicable Disease Centre (CDC) at Tan Tock Seng Hospital for further medical assessment and two have been admitted for isolation. MOH is continuing with its screening of residents and workers in the Clive Street area for chikungunya fever.

6          NEA is also conducting intensive mosquito control operations in the Clive Street area and will extend it to cover the Little India enclave over the next few days.  All houses and shop premises are being checked for mosquito breeding habitats and treated with insecticides.  Inspection of premises will carry on into the night. Residents and premises owners are advised to check their premises daily to remove any stagnant water that may breed mosquitoes.  The Environmental Health Institute will continue to carry out laboratory tests to detect the presence of any chikungunya virus from samples collected from the Clive Street area.

7          Persons who have been in the Clive Street area recently and have developed a fever are advised to consult their doctors. Chikungunya fever, like dengue fever, is a mosquito-borne disease and the best way to prevent chikungunya fever is to take precautionary measures to prevent mosquito breeding. Persons infected with chikungunya fever should be isolated from further mosquitoes bites (by staying indoors and sleeping under a mosquito net during the first few days of illness) to reduce the risk of further transmission of the virus.

8          We would like to seek the cooperation of the public, in particular, residents or individuals who work in the affected area to provide relevant information to Health Officers from MOH who are currently carrying out epidemiological investigations.  The MOH Health Officers may further require a blood sample so as to test for the presence of chikungunya infection.