Singapore's first Zika patient discharged from communicable diseases centre

The 48-year-old male Singapore permanent resident, who is the first imported case of Zika virus infection in Singapore, has been discharged from the hospital's communicable diseases center, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) and the National Environment Agency (NEA) in a joint statement on Tuesday.

The patient, who is now tested negative for the virus, was tested positive for Zika virus infection last Friday. He had traveled to Sao Paulo, Brazil from March 27 to May 7. MOH added that the patient has made "a full recovery" and all his family have not reported any symptoms of Zika.

In a statement on the same day, MOH advises Singapore travellers to receive vaccination against yellow fever at least 10 days before travelling to yellow fever endemic countries.

"MOH is issuing this reminder as Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo are currently experiencing large outbreaks of the disease. We also expect more travellers to Rio de Janerio, Brazil in August 2016 for the Summer Olympic Games. While Rio de Janerio itself is not endemic for Yellow Fever, the majority of the states in Brazil are yellow fever endemic," the ministry said.

Yellow fever is a mosquito borne acute viral haemorrhagic disease caused by the yellow fever virus. It is transmitted by the bite of an infected Aedes aegypti mosquito, similar to dengue and Zika virus infection. The majority of the infected persons are asymptomatic or have only mild illness. Symptoms include fever, chills, headache, muscle aches, joint aches, loss of appetite and nausea or vomiting.

Vaccination is the most effective preventive measure against yellow fever. The vaccine confers lifelong protection against the disease 10 days after vaccination, MOH added. Endit