Some years ago, while
working in a hospital, I was informed by a nursing staff that a Ms Juliana
asked to see me in the ward. Visiting patients (friends and relatives) comes
with the turf. When I walked into the 4 bedder ward, I saw a familiar face, a
lady with long hair in bed.
She looked gaunt with
exhaustion, a face turned ashen. From her livid lips, she appeared next to death’s
door. I was shocked. She whispered and said she was down with dengue fever.
There is no medicine for dengue and while most victims recover, some do succumb
to dengue haemorrhagic fever which can be fatal. Fortunately, she recovered
although it took months to get back to her usual self.
Dengue fever is an illness
caused by infection with a virus transmitted by the Aedes mosquito. There are
four types of this virus (serotypes 1 to 4) which can infect you.
Dengue fever and dengue
haemorrhagic fever (a more severe form) are the most common mosquito-borne
viral diseases in the world. In Singapore, dengue fever has been endemic since
the 1960s.
In 2005/06, my daughter
visited Kerala, India twice as part of school community involvement programme.
Back then, I first learn of chikungunya virus, also carried by mosquitoes. The
symptoms are similar to dengue although in some serious cases, complication of
encephalitis (swelling, inflammation of the brain) sets in, a dangerous situation.
Chikungunya is fairly common in parts of India. As parents, you can imagine our
anxiety.
The first outbreak of chikungunya
in Asia occurred in Bangkok, Thailand, in 1958. Since then, outbreaks have been
reported in Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, Malaysia, the Philippines, and
Indonesia. In 2007, 10 imported cases were reported to Singapore’s Ministry of
Health.
On January 14, 2008, a
local case of chikungunya infection was detected through the general
practitioners’ laboratory-based surveillance system. A total of 2,626 people
who resided or worked within a 150-m radius of the index case-patient’s address
were screened for chikungunya infection. The consequences of chikungunya are
equally dreadful as is dengue.
Last month, the US experience
the highest resurgence of West Nile disease, another virus passed on to humans
from mosquitoes.
Originally from Africa,
West Nile virus first appeared in Queens, New York in 1999. Crows were dying in
large numbers. It took weeks before officials found out the culprit. This virus lives in birds. Mosquitoes biting
infected birds are themselves infected. This virus is then passed on to humans
when these pesky mosquitoes draw blood.
As of September 4, 2012, 48
states have reported West Nile virus infections in people, birds, or
mosquitoes. A total of 1,993 cases of West Nile virus disease in people,
including 87 deaths, have been reported to CDC. That’s a high mortality rate of
4.3%, much higher than dengue or chikungunya.
Like dengue fever or chikungunya,
there is also no drug or vaccine to counter West Nile virus. The best we can do
is to prevent mosquitoes from infecting us in the first place; never mind what
kind of mosquitoes. This calls for vigilance especially in minimising breeding
sites, be it in flower pots, pails and all vessels containing stagnant water.
For the privileged few living on landed properties, your roof gulleys are the usual
culprits for mosquito breeding.
In the case of the West Nile,
the key culprits were infected birds in the first place. It begs the question
whether West Nile will eventually find its way to Singapore. After all, we are
a natural refueling stop-over for many migratory birds. Furthermore, we are a
city state with a history of imported chikungunya and deadly SARS before. Who knows? An unwanted migrant may well surface.
Meanwhile, it is the stupid
culex mosquito that is keeping me awake; better known as the common house
mosquito. While not considered as much of a threat to our health as the Aedes
mosquitoes, it is still an irritant we can do without.
Side
Notes:
No thanks to the Indons,
the current haze makes it impossible to sleep without air-con. So while it is
mosquito-free nights on air-con, their haze creates another set of hazards;
respiratory associated problems. So now I am tearing from the haze and high electricity
bill.
The emergence of international air
travel in the 20th century enabled an unprecedented spread of ideas, cultures
and communication. Unfortunately, modern aviation has also proved an effective
means of spreading diseases. Air travel didn’t introduce worldwide pandemics,
of course, but with tens of millions of scheduled
international flights annually and hundreds of millions of passengers en
route from high-risk areas, health officials are often hard pressed to pinpoint
the source and cause of an international outbreak……
The first step when using the VBD-AIR
tool is to input the name of the airport to be investigated, the month in
question and the disease to be tracked—current choices are all mosquito-borne and
include dengue, malaria, yellow fever and chikungunya. …….
H-P's CEO Strategy: From
Platt to Whitman
A 6-min revisit on all past
chiefs. Can Hewlett-Packard be turned around? Dan Gallagher joins Markets Hub
with a look at the revolving CEO door at H-P and how different strategies
worked out.
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