Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia have unleashed special mosquitoes injected with bacteria along with a slew of community efforts to tackle dengue. But with cases still on the rise, just how effective are these measures?
Southeast Asian countries Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia have in recent years been plagued by a spike in dengue cases. SINGAPORE/KUALA LUMPUR/JAKARTA: When Benjamin Loh came down with a fever of 40 degrees Celsius last July, he thought he had caught COVID-19 again.
“It was this whole potpourri, this whole medley of symptoms that really make you want to not do anything.” Governments in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia specifically have implemented measures such as bacteria-carrying mosquitoes and community campaigns, to name a few. But are they working? CNA takes a closer look at the three countries’ battle against the virus.The World Health Organization describes dengue as a viral infection caused by the dengue virus , transmitted to humans through the bite of infected mosquitoes - specifically Aedes mosquitoes.
South American nation Brazil has been in the spotlight as well, after reporting more than a million cases and around 300 deaths in the first two months of the year. Several states have declared a state of emergency.An overall upward trajectory can be traced back to 2018. Then, Singapore reported over 3,000 cases - an almost 20 per cent increase from 2017, when infections had fallen to a record 16-year low.
Neighbouring Malaysia logged over 123,000 dengue cases in 2023, an 86 per cent increase from about 66,000 cases the year before. The numbers in 2022 were, in turn, more than double the more than 26,000 cases reported in 2021.As of Mar 16, Malaysia has seen 38,524 dengue cases and 24 deaths. “Mosquitoes mature faster, lay eggs faster. The eggs hatch faster and the number of mosquito bites to humans also increases,” explained Dr Riris Andono Ahmad, a researcher at Gadjah Mada University’s Centre for Tropical Medicine.
Bogor district health office officials conduct fogging activities in Curug Village, West Java, Indonesia. In this area three residents were infected with dengue fever, March 15, 2024. In Malaysia, the rise in dengue cases is due to climate change, rapid urbanisation as well as improper waste management and water storage that give Aedes mosquitoes a chance to breed, said the country's health minister Dzulkefly Ahmad.
Professor Ooi Eng Eong of Duke-NUS Medical School speaks to CNA about the dengue situation in Singapore. Singapore, for one, made dengue fever a notifiable disease in 1977. This is when a disease is of public interest due to its contagiousness, severity or frequency and health providers are required by law to report to public health officials.
And those who cannot afford healthcare will choose to delay seeking medical attention, versus those who may seek help earlier and therefore start disease management earlier as well - though this is not unique to dengue, Prof Ooi stressed. Over in Indonesia, six cities - Bontang, Kupang, Semarang, West Jakarta, Bandung and Denpasar - will also deploy Wolbachia mosquitoes, state news agency Antara reported this month.Aside from such scientific methods, traditional prevention strategies remain key, said Indonesia’s Dr Riris.
It started with a “Keep Singapore Clean and Mosquito Free” movement in 1969 and has morphed into an annual National Dengue Prevention Campaign. Given Singapore’s status as a trade and travel hub, the cross-border sharing of data has been useful in identifying common virus lineages in the region and their association with outbreaks in respective countries, the agency added.
For Indonesia, however, lack of information and the spread of falsehoods have hampered the rollout of Wolbachia mosquitoes, such as in Duke-NUS’ Prof Ooi said that for people in Singapore, knowledge “hasn’t always translated to action”. Post-dengue, Mr Loh and his wife ensure their three-year-old son sports two different types of mosquito repellent stickers when going to the playground. Mr Loh himself has started using insect repellent before heading out.“It'll be crazy in this ‘sauna’ Singapore ... Having the middle ground of precaution, self-care and as well as not being too paranoid does help.
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