57-year-old woman is first patient in S’pore to have both dengue and Covid-19 infections: MOH

SINGAPORE — A 57-year-old woman is Singapore’s first patient known to be infected with both the Covid-19 coronavirus and the mosquito-borne dengue fever, the Ministry of Health (MOH) confirmed on Thursday (Feb 20). 

A ministry spokesperson said the woman was not misdiagnosed with dengue, but that she is the only confirmed case here of a person having both diseases at once. 

Referred to as case 82, the Singaporean woman was initially admitted as a dengue patient at a general ward at Ng Teng Fong General Hospital (NTFGH) on Feb 15. She lives in the Jurong West Street 41 area.

Test results confirmed the woman was infected with Covid-19 on Tuesday, and she was immediately transferred to an isolation room at the hospital. 

As a precautionary measure, the patients who shared the room with her while she was in the general ward have been transferred to single rooms. They have been tested for Covid-19 infection and as of Wednesday, the results are pending. 

Even as Singapore grapples with the novel coronavirus outbreak, dengue cases — a perennial condition — have been on the rise recently.

The number of dengue cases in the first six weeks of the year is at its highest since 2016. As of Feb 8, 2,130 people have been infected, based on data from the National Environment Agency.

Follow TODAY’s coverage of Covid-19 and its latest developments here: https://tdy.sg/covid19