Spike in dengue cases in first months of 2013

SINGAPORE: Dengue cases have spiked in the first couple of months this year.

In the first week of January, there were 100 cases. This number climbed to more than 300 cases last week.

Within Punggol South, there have been more than 100 cases reported in seven clusters.

To remind residents in the area to do their part in preventing dengue, Second Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Grace Fu visited households on Saturday.

She said that officers from the National Environment Agency and the town councils are stepping up checks to make sure the environment is free of mosquito breeding.

She also urged residents to be vigilant, noting that 70 per cent of the breeding sites in dengue cases are found in households.

She also said those suffering from dengue must also protect themselves from being bitten by mosquitoes — so as to stop the chain of transmission.

Minister for Environment and Water Resources Vivian Balakrishnan also reinforced the message that homeowners must be pro—active in making sure that their homes do not become mosquito breeding grounds.

He said: "We will never have enough officers to inspect every home all the time. It only takes five to seven days for the mosquito life cycle to restart again and clearly we cannot be entering homes every five days. So the key thing is we do need the homeowners to take their own precautions for their own safety."

He added that the situation is aggravated because of a different serotype which is beginning to emerge.

"Dengue I and Dengue III, and because these are serotypes which have not previously circulated in a significant way in Singapore, we don’t have the immunity for it. That’s why I think this epidemic is taking off and I do need to sound that note of caution to all Singaporeans," he added.

— CNA/xq