Malaysia: 16 down with chikungunya in Kampung Ulu Choh

[Shiloh]

Source: http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Sunday/National/2224874/Article/index_html

2008/04/27
16 down with chikungunya
By : Siti Nurbaiyah Nadzmi

JOHOR BARU: Sixteen people in Kampung Ulu Choh here have been diagnosed with chikungunya, a non-lethal viral fever with symptoms similar to dengue.
Women and Family Development, Welfare and Health state Commitee chairman Dr Robia Kosai said the victims were infected by the viral fever two weeks ago.

It was confirmed on Thursday that it was chikungunya.

She said although the symptoms were similar to dengue fever, it was not a life-threatening disease.

"It is under control and was not classified as an outbreak. Chikungunya is a self-limiting disease, which means the patients will recover from it in due course, while treatment is symptomatic."
Dr Robia said patients would suffer viral fever, including joint pains and measles-like rashes.

Since the virus is spread by the Aedes mosquito, the same mosquito which carries the dengue virus, preventive measures such as fogging and health checks are conducted by the state Health Department in targeted areas.

"We are urging the public to keep their homes and surrounding areas clean and free from containers which can be an Aedes-breeding ground," she said.

She added that those who suffered from prolonged fever with rashes should seek treatment at hospitals.

 

[Shiloh]

Re: Malaysia: 16 down with chikungunya in Kampung Ulu Choh

Source: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/4/29/nation/20080429151926&sec=nation
Tuesday April 29, 2008 MYT 3:54:08 PM
Johor told to clean up in view of chikungunya cases
By HAMDAN RAJA ABDULLAH

MUAR: All village committee leaders in Johor have been urged to carry out campaigns to destroy mosquito-breeding areas to curb the outbreak of chikungunya fever.

State Women, Family, Community Development and Health Committee chairman Dr Robia Kosai said the fever, an acute viral disease transmitted by mosquito, had been reported in two villages in Johor recently.

She said several villagers in Kampung Ulu Choh and Kampung Paya Mengkuang near Gelang Patah had been down with fever, rashes and joint pains since April 18.

Blood samples from these patients had been sent to a laboratory in Sungai Buluh for tests and three of the samples were found positive.

"Following the find, we urge all village committees throughout the state to undertake cleaning campaigns to rid mosquito-breeding areas in their villages," she said here Tuesday.

Dr Robia said 16 cases were reported in Kampung Ulu Choh and another seven in Kampung Paya Mengkuang and all the patients were given outpatient treatment.

She said although the fever did not cause death, those suffering from it would be in pain and have a high fever, adding that, even adults could contract the disease.

She said besides cleaning up all mosquito-breeding areas in the villages, home owners should also ensure there were no breeding grounds inside and outside their houses.

She said the authorities would carry out fogging activities when necessary and urged parents to spray their homes with insect repellent and to use mosquito nets at night.

Residents should also wear long-sleeved shirts or dresses and always wear those with lighter colours as dark or black dresses attract mosquitoes.

"We also want those down with fever to immediately seek treatment at the nearest hospital or clinic," she added.

 

[Shiloh]

Re: Malaysia: 16 down with chikungunya in Kampung Ulu Choh

Source: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/4/30/nation/21101276&sec=nation

Wednesday April 30, 2008

Chikungunya fever hits Johor villages
By AUDREY EDWARDS and HAMDAN RAJA ABDULLAH

PETALING JAYA: Several people in two villages in Johor have been found to be down with the mosquito-transmitted chikungunya fever.

Health Ministry Disease Control Division director Datuk Dr Hasan Abdul Rahman said that 15 of the 94 samples, which were sent for testing at the National Public Health Laboratory in Sungai Buloh, tested positive for the disease.

The patients did not need hospitalisation but suffered mild symptoms like fever, rashes and joint pains, he said.

He said that Johor state health department officers were sent to the affected areas following complaints from the patients of their illness.

?It is confined to the villages. Fogging had been carried out because the aedes mosquito index there is high,? he said.

Dr Hasan said the situation was under control and there was no cause for alarm.

?It is important to remain vigilant. It is important to go to the hospital if you have any symptoms instead of staying at home,? he said.

Johor state Women, Family, Community Development and Health Committee chairman Dr Robia Kosai said several villagers in Kampung Ulu Choh and Kampung Paya Mengkuang near Gelang Patah had been down with fever, rashes and pains at the joints since April 18.

?We urge all village committees throughout the state to undertake cleaning campaigns to rid mosquito-breeding areas in their villages,? she said in Muar yesterday.

Dr Robia said 16 cases were reported in Kampung Ulu Choh and another seven in Kampung Paya Mengkuang and all the patients were given outpatient treatment.

She said although the fever did not cause death, those suffering from it would be in pain and have high fever, adding that adults could also contract the disease.

She said that besides cleaning up all mosquito-breeding areas in the villages, homeowners should also ensure there were no breeding grounds inside and outside their houses.

Dr Robia said that the authorities would carry out fogging activity when necessary and urged the people to spray their homes with insect repellent and to use mosquito nets at night.

Residents should also wear long-sleeved shirts or long dresses and always wear those with light colours as dark or black dresses attract mosquitoes.

?We also want those down with fever to immediately seek treatment at the nearest hospitals or clinics,? she added.

It had previously been reported that the fever in Malaysia is very rare and the first reported cases were in Port Klang in 1999 where it affected 27 people.

Thirty-seven people in Bagan Panchor, Perak, were down with the illness in April 2006 and in December the same year, it was confined to 30 people in Ipoh.

Those affected were either workers from India or Malaysian workers returning from India, where an outbreak had been reported earlier.

 

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Re: Malaysia: 16 down with chikungunya in Kampung Ulu Choh

Source: http://www.mmail.com.my/Current_News/mm/Thursday/Hotnews/20080626103314/Article/index_html

No alarm over Chikungunya

RESIDENTS of Sri Melaka flats should not fear a chikungunya outbreak is imminent due to increasing cases elsewhere.

Yesterday, the Health Ministry sent a fogging team to the area. Several men in masks and armed with fogging machines covered more than 10 blocks of the five-storey flats.

When Malay Mail visited the area, the team was already half way through fogging the area and several blocks were enveloped in smoke. Residents gathered outside the buildings to watch.

Faisal Mohd Nasir, 36, who was visiting his mother who stays on the ground floor, said he was happy the ministry had taken notice of the residents? fears.

?I hope they can do this more often,? said Faisal.

Resident, G. Ganeson, 49, whose wife was down with dengue fever a few months ago, is hopeful the authorities would conduct frequent fogging in the area.

Meanwhile, the Health Ministry said fogging exercises would be carried out frequently in the city as not only dengue fever is being registered but also chikungunya, which is also caused by the Aedes mosquito.

An officer with the ministry?s disease control division advised residents not to be alarmed although this month alone the ministry had detected more than 20 people diagnosed with chikungunya fever throughout the country.

Of the 20, three had been hospitalised.

The officer, who declined to be named, said the symptoms of chikungunya fever is similar to dengue fever.

Chikungunya fever is a viral illness that is spread by the bite of infected mosquitoes.

The disease resembles dengue fever, and is characterised by severe, sometimes persistent, joint pain like arthritis, as well as fever and rash. It is rarely life-threatening.

?Patients infected by chikungunya virus through the Aedes mosquito generally do not need hospitalisation. They suffer mild symptoms like fever, rashes and joint pains,? he said.

However, he said it was important to remain vigilant and go to the hospital if people had any symptoms.

He advised the public to keep their environment clean and ensure there were no breeding grounds inside and outside their houses.

The officer added that no vaccine is available against this viral infection.

?Prevention is the best remedy.

It can be avoided by taking steps to avoid mosquito bites and elimination of mosquito breeding sites.? According to studies by the disease control division, Chikungunya is caused by an Arborvirus, which belongs to the genus Alphavirus under the Togaviridae family. The virus is transmitted to humans by infected Aedes mosquitoes, The urban outbreaks are sporadic but explosive in nature. It then disappears and reappears at irregular intervals.

A Chikungunya outbreak was first reported in Kampung Bagan Panchor, Pantai Remis, Perak in 2006 involving 30 people.

The incubation period of the disease is two to four days.

 

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Re: Malaysia: 16 down with chikungunya in Kampung Ulu Choh

Source: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/6/28/nation/21681769&sec=nation

Saturday June 28, 2008
34 plantation workers down with suspected Chikungunya
By NELSON BENJAMIN

SEGAMAT: Thirty-four plantation workers from a rubber estate here are suspected to be down with Chikungunya fever.

While many received outpatient treatment for the mosquitoe-transmitted fever, at least 14 have been warded at the Segamat Hospital since the outbreak was detected about 12 days ago in Bukit Datuk Estate.

Many of the workers have been suffering from fever, rashes and joint pains.

This is the second major outbreak in the state over the past three months.
In April, several villagers in Kampung Ulu Choh and Kampung Paya Mengkuang near Gelang Patah had contracted Chikungunya.

On the latest outbreak in Segamat, state Health department director Dr Mohd Khairi Yakub said: ?Fourteen were admitted, but as of now we have two or three people still warded for observation.

?We have also taken at least 12 samples and have sent it for further tests to confirm whether it was Chikungunya fever,? he said.

He urged the public not to panic. ?The situation is under control,'' he said, adding that the fever was not life threatening.

Dr Mohd Khairi said a medical team had been sent to the area to conduct house-to-house checks to treat the sufferers after it came to light on June 16 that several workers were showing symptoms of Chikungunya.

Estate worker N. Krishnaveni, 35, said she had had severe body aches for about a week and was hospitalised for three days.

?I went to the clinic two times but they only gave me pills.

However, two days later I had severe swelling in both my legs and face and I couldn't go back to work,? she said, adding that she was then hospitalised and given injections.

?My husband was also suffering from aches and pains but he was not admitted.?

She said that this was the first time there was such an outbreak in the 20 years she had been living there.

Another estate worker M. Tamilchelvi, 34, said she was hospitalised for four days for severe joint pains and fever.

?My daughter was also down,? she said.

She also said that the estate management was cleaning up the area, as there were a lot of mosquitoes in the area.

State Women, Family, Community Development and Health Committee chairman Dr Robia Kosai advised people to keep their living and work surroundings clean.

?Unlike dengue fever, Chikungunya is not fatal,'' she said, advising anyone who was down with fever to seek medical treatment immediately.

The health department officials were fogging the area while the estate authorities had carried out a gotong royong to clear the estate of potential mosquito breeding grounds.

 

[Shiloh]

Re: Malaysia: 16 down with chikungunya in Kampung Ulu Choh

Source: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/8/19/nation/22116472&sec=nation

Tuesday August 19, 2008
Chikungunya and dengue situation in Perak, Negri and KL has improved

TANGKAK: The chikungunya and dengue fever outbreaks in Perak, Negri Sembilan and Kuala Lumpur are under control.

Health Minister Datuk Liow Tiong Lai urged the people to help clean up villages, housing areas and towns to ensure their premises do not become mosquito-breeding grounds.

He said that apart from the three areas, Johor and Malacca too had been affected by the chikungunya outbreak.

He added that the ministry had declared an all-out war against the culprit mosquitoes to further curb the menace.

Liow, who was earlier briefed on the chikungunya outbreak by Muar Health Department officer Dr Mohd Zulkifli Othman, said that as of Sunday Johor had recorded more than 830 cases of chikungunya.

He said the ministry had set up special units to monitor all affected areas and taken preventive measures, including fogging, to curb the spread of the disease.

On the shortage of doctors in government hospitals, Liow said the ministry would implement measures to increase their numbers, especially in Johor, Sabah and Sarawak.

He said one way was to increase the number of new doctors in big hospitals so that experienced professionals could become visiting doctors at smaller hospitals.

?We will also resolve the shortage by asking the Public Services Department to take in more doctors immediately, and we will also engage foreign doctors,? he added.

?I have directed the ministry's director-general to expedite the plan, and also to recall local doctors now serving abroad.?

 

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Re: Malaysia: 16 down with chikungunya in Kampung Ulu Choh

Source: http://www.sun2surf.com/article.cfm?id=25254

Chikungunya: 179 cases from Aug 17-23


PUTRAJAYA (Aug 29, 2008): The Health Ministry said today there has been a drop in the number of reported Chikungunya cases.

In a statement, director of the ministry's disease control division Datuk Dr Hasan Abdul Rahman said the ministry received 179 reports of Chikungunya cases nationwide for the week of Aug 17-23, a drop of 34 cases from the previous week.

"A total of 36 cases were detected through house-to-house checks while the rest were reported by clinics and hospitals," he said.

Hasan said the cases reported in the latest period were 124 in Johor, Melaka (42), Perak (10) and one case each in Putrajaya, Pahang and Selangor.

He said up till now no deaths had been reported due to Chikungunya.

Hasan said up till now the total number cases reported this year were 1,479 cases with Johor having the highest number with 897 cases followed by Melaka (363), Perak (98), Negeri Sembilan (89), Selangor (25), Pahang (4) and Kuala Lumpur (3).

He said only 207 cases (14 per cent) out of the total needed treatment in hospitals while rest needed outpatient treatment.

He said the ministry took speedy measures and was continously monitoring patients in the areas where reports were made.

The Chikungunya disease is spread through the bite of the Aedes mosquito.

He said besides fogging, the destruction of breeding grounds, especially through community efforts, was necessary to eradicate the Aedes mosquito.

-- Bernama

 

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Re: Malaysia: 16 down with chikungunya in Kampung Ulu Choh

Source: http://www.bernama.com.my/bernama/v3/news.php?id=357178

September 04, 2008 18:32 PM

224 More Suspected Chikungunya Cases

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 4 (Bernama) -- A total of 224 people nationwide are suspected to be down with Chikungunya last week, compared with only 179 in the previous week.

Health Ministry disease control director Datuk Dr Hasan Abdul Rahman said 94 cases, or 42 per cent of the total were detected by going door-to-door.

The cases this week were reported in five states, namely, were Johor, Melaka, Perak, Penang and Sarawak, he said in a statement here Thursday.

The total number of cases nationwide is 1,703 of which 996 were from Johor, Melaka (405), Perak (173), Negeri Sembilan (92), Selangor (26), Pahang (five), Putrajaya (three), Sarawak (two) and Penang (one).

Dr Hasan said Chikungunya was a disease that could only be spread by the aedes mosquito.

-- BERNAMA

 

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Re: Malaysia: 16 down with chikungunya in Kampung Ulu Choh

Source: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/9/9/nation/20080909174244&sec=nation

Tuesday September 9, 2008 MYT 5:43:46 PM
1,000+ Chikungunya cases in Johor
By FARIK ZOLKEPLI

JOHOR BAR: A total of 1,169 cases of Chikungunya have been reported in Johor this year, said State Woman, Family, Community and Health Committee chairman Dr Robia Kosai.

The worst hit districts were Johor Baru with 475 cases, Kluang (179) and Muar (160).

She however said that the numbers complied by the department were not complete as there were private hospitals and clinics that had not reported cases. ?No deaths have been reported as the virus is not life threatening,? she said in her reply to Tang Nai Soon (BN-Pekan Nanas) at the State Assembly here on Tuesday.

Dr Robia said all the victims had recovered.

The state had deployed its Health Department?s active case detection team and formed a control centre for the virus, as well as taking preventive measures such as fogging to combat the mosquito-borne disease.