Singapore confirms fourth case of monkeypox infection since June

SINGAPORE — The Ministry of Health (MOH) on Friday (July 8) reported one more imported case of monkeypox in Singapore, taking the total number of cases confirmed since June to four.

The patient is a 30-year-old India national who lives in Singapore and had recently returned from Germany.

The man developed rashes in the groin area on June 30, and a fever a week later on July 7.

He sought medical care and was taken to the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID) on July 7, said MOH. He tested positive for monkeypox on July 8.

Contact tracing is ongoing.

MOH said that the man's condition is stable, and that his case is not linked to the other monkeypox cases earlier announced by the ministry.

The latest infection takes Singapore's total number of monkeypox cases since June to four. Three of them are imported and one is a local infection.

Singapore's first monkeypox case this year was an imported case. The patient was a 42-year-old British national who works as a flight attendant. He tested positive on June 20. 

The country reported its first local infection on Wednesday, a 45-year-old Malaysian man who lives in Singapore.

Another imported case was confirmed on Thursday, a 36-year-old male Indian national who lives in Singapore and had recently returned from the United States.

The ministry said that all the cases are not linked.

Monkeypox is a viral disease that is caused by infection with the monkeypox virus. It is typically a self-limiting illness where patients recover within two to four weeks. 

"A small percentage of those infected can fall seriously ill or even die. Those particularly vulnerable to complications are young children, pregnant women or immunocompromised individuals," said the ministry previously. 

It added that the risk to the general public remains low as transmission requires close physical or prolonged contact. CNA