Update 22 May 2021: ‘Black fungus’ disease linked to Covid spreads across India
7,200 mucormycosis cases reported, usually in patients with diabetes or compromised immune systems
States across India have begun declaring a “black fungus” epidemic as cases of the fatal rare infection shoot up in patients recovering from Covid-19. The fungal disease, called mucormycosis, has a 50% mortality rate. It affects patients initially in the nose but the fungus can then spread into the brain, and can often only be treated by major surgery removing the eye or part of skull and jaw.
It is usually a rare disease, but more than 7,200 people in India have now been reported with mucormycosis and 219 have lost their lives. The rise in black fungus infections, mostly in patients who had severe cases of Covid-19, has been linked to an overuse of steroids in the treatment of the coronavirus, which can acutely compromise the immune system if taken over a prolonged period. The high incidence of diabetes in India has also been blamed, with high blood sugar levels linked to susceptibility. India has the second highest rate of diabetes in the world. It has also been reported in Covid patients who were on ventilators in intensive care units, due to their airways being exposed to humidity and moisture.
The disease is caused by fungal spores found in soil and organic matter, usually inhaled by humans from the air. The mould enters the body and then manifests around the nose and eye sockets, causing the nose to blacken, and if not stopped will move fatally into the brain. Healthy individuals will usually fight off the fungus but it can spread fast in those with compromised immunity.
What is 'black fungus' and why India?
Several thousand coronavirus patients in India have contracted a deadly and aggressive fungal infection, compounding the country's woes as it reels from the pandemic.
What is the fungus? Mucormycosis, dubbed "black fungus", is caused by a mould found in soil and in decaying organic matter like rotting leaves, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). People get mucormycosis, of which there are several types, by breathing in the fungal spores. They can be spread in hospitals and homes by air humidifiers or oxygen tanks containing dirty water.
How dangerous is it? The infection needs to be caught early as it is aggressive and dead tissue has to be scraped away. Surgeons sometimes have to remove patients' nose, eyes or even their jaw to stop it getting to the brain. The average fatality rate is 54 percent, according to the CDC. Once infected, people can die within days. However it is not contagious, according to the CDC. India normally deals with a few dozen cases a year. Generally the body's defences repel the fungus and only those with severely weakened immune systems -- for example organ transplant or cancer patients -- are affected.
No truth to Delhi official’s claims of new Singapore Covid-19 variant: Ministry of Health
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal claimed that the new variant could result in a third wave in India. PHOTO: AFP
Singapore’s Ministry of Health (MOH) has rebutted claims by a politician in India, which were carried by several media outlets, of a new Covid-19 strain in Singapore.
“There is no truth whatsoever in the assertions found within the reports. There is no ‘Singapore variant’,” an MOH spokesman said on Tuesday (May 18).
“The strain that is prevalent in many of the Covid-19 cases in recent weeks is the B16172 variant, which originated in India. Phylogenetic testing has shown this B16172 variant to be associated with several clusters in Singapore,” the spokesman added.
Ministry of Health rubbishes claims of a 'Singapore variant' that would cause third Covid wave in India
THE Ministry of Health (MOH) has refuted claims of a "Singapore variant" of the coronavirus, saying there is "no truth whatsoever" in the assertions found within the reports.
In response to media queries on reports by the Hindustan Times and NDTV on Tuesday, MOH said "the strain that is prevalent in many of the Covid-19 cases in recent weeks is the B.1.617.2 variant which originated in India". "Phylogenetic testing has shown this B.1.617.2 variant to be associated with several clusters in Singapore," added MOH in a statement issued late on Tuesday.
Earlier, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said a new Covid variant detected in Singapore may "come as a third wave" in India. No medical evidence nor authority was cited in the claim. In his tweet, the minister added that he is appealing to the central government to take "immediate" measures, including suspension of flights to and from Singapore.
Chee Hong Tat 徐芳达 9 hrs
Full article to the news: https://www.hindustantimes.com/…/singapore-virus-can-be-ind…
No new work pass holders allowed in from high-risk places
Singapore has stopped accepting new entry applications for work pass holders from countries or regions at higher risk of Covid-19, given the resurgence of the virus in several countries and the emergence of new virus variants.
In this period of heightened alert, only workers needed for key strategic projects and infrastructural works will be allowed entry, said the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) yesterday.
All countries and regions are considered to be at higher risk, except Australia, Brunei, New Zealand, the Chinese mainland, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau.
Lawrence Wong says SG didn’t close border with India due to need for migrant workers, but traveller stats shows otherwise
At a press briefing on Tuesday (4 May), Minister Lawrence Wong told the media that Singapore can’t afford to shut its borders as the country needs migrant workers to build homes.
Mr Wong was trying to explain why Singapore did not close its border to India earlier, given the record new outbreaks happening there. “We are small… We need migrant workers to build our homes,” he said, adding that foreign workers are also needed for a range of other essential services, including caring for the elderly.
For example, four days before the the ban on 23 April, with regards to long-term and short-term pass holders who flew directly from India, many of the infected were not migrant workers:
In a press release on Friday, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said border measures with respect to these countries were tightened as there have been recent sharp increases in cases reported by them. The ministry added that the restrictions will also apply to those who had obtained prior approval for entry into Singapore. It will not apply to Singaporeans and Singapore permanent residents.
In addition, all travellers with recent travel history to Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka who have yet to complete their 14-day Stay-Home Notice by 11.59pm on Sunday will need to complete an additional seven-day SHN at dedicated facilities. "They will undergo COVID-19 Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) tests on-arrival, on Day 14 of their SHN, and another test before the end of their 21-day SHN period," the MOH said.
Social media influencers kicked out of Bali for face-mask prank
A pair of social media influencers will be booted from Bali over a prank video that featured one sporting a painted-on virus mask that broke Covid-19 rules. Authorities in Bali said Friday that they would deport US-based Taiwanese YouTuber Josh Paler Lin and Russian influencer Leia Se over the stunt that went viral.
In the video, Lin expresses surprise that few people seem to notice Se walking around a Bali supermarket with the painted-on blue mask. She applied the make-up after store security initially turned away the maskless Russian. The clip sparked outrage in Bali, where virus cases and deaths have been climbing. Foreigners can be hit with a fine of one million rupiah ($70) for not wearing a mask in Bali and face deportation for the second offence. But authorities decided to boot out the pair over their prank. "We plan to deport them," said Jamaruli Manihuruk, head of Bali's legal and justice office. "It has to wait until flights to their respective countries are available -- hopefully soon."
Lin, 32, who regularly posts prank videos to his 3.4 million subscribers on YouTube, has already deleted the clip and apologised. "I made this video to entertain people because I'm a content creator and it is my job to entertain people," Lin said in an online apology. "However, I did not realise that what I did could actually bring a lot of negative comments," he added.
Indians use Nepal to circumvent travel bans
Stuck by coronavirus restrictions, Indians use Kathmandu to fly abroad
Indians with jobs or families abroad are using Kathmandu transit to go to countries like Saudi Arabia, Singapore and Hong Kong that have banned direct flights from India which is battered by a second wave.
Despite Nepal itself seeing a surge in Covid-19 cases and fatalities, and a week-long lockdown in New Delhi, neither India nor Nepal and destination countries have so far stopped the roundabout route.
This has led to a several-fold increase in air fares for the daily two flights between New Delhi and Kathmandu. While the 1 hour and 15 minute Kathmandu-Delhi flights cost Rs9,000 this week, Delhi-Kathmandu tickets are selling for up to Rs45,000.
Singapore's COVID-19 measure barring visitors from India is not based on nationality - Ong Ye Kung
Singapore’s move to stop the entry of visitors who have recent travel history to India is not based on nationality, said Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung on Monday (Apr 26).
As of 11.59pm last Friday, all long-term pass holders and short-term visitors who have travelled to India in the last 14 days are not allowed to enter Singapore. This includes visitors who transit in India and those who had earlier obtained approval for entry into Singapore. The border measure was implemented amid a spike in COVID-19 infections in India. On Monday, the country's daily coronavirus cases set a new global record for the fifth straight day.
With 352,991 new cases, India's total caseload has crossed 17 million. Deaths rose by a record 2,812 to reach a total of 195,123.
Indian nationals use Nepal to circumvent travel bans resulting in crowding in hotels at Kathmandu
The Nepali Times reported on Wed that many Indian nationals who are stuck in India due to the coronavirus travel restrictions imposed by a number of countries, are now using Kathmandu, the capital city of Nepal, to fly abroad (‘Indians use Nepal to circumvent travel bans‘, 21 Apr).
It said that they are using Kathmandu as a transit point to fly to countries like Saudi Arabia, Singapore and Hong Kong, which have all banned direct flights from India. As of today (24 Apr), India reported more than 340,000 cases of coronavirus, setting a world record for a third day running.
“Despite Nepal itself seeing a surge in Covid-19 cases and fatalities, and a week-long lockdown in New Delhi, neither India nor Nepal and destination countries have so far stopped the roundabout route,” Nepali Times wrote.
India COVID-19 cases set new global record for 4th straight day
India set a new global record of the most number of COVID-19 infections in a day, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday (Apr 25) urged all citizens to be vaccinated and exercise caution, saying the "storm" of infections had shaken the country.
The United States said it was deeply concerned by the massive surge in coronavirus cases in India and was racing to send aid to India.
India's number of cases surged by 349,691 in the past 24 hours, the fourth straight day of record peaks, and hospitals in Delhi and across the country are turning away patients after running out of medical oxygen and beds.
As Covid-19 cases there surge
The move takes effect from 11.59pm on April 23, 2021.PHOTO: ST FILE
All long-term pass holders and short-term visitors who have travelled to India within the last 14 days will not be allowed to enter or transit through Singapore, as the country goes on "heightened alert" against Covid-19.
This move takes effect from 11.59pm on Friday, and includes people who have prior approval to enter Singapore, said Education Minister Lawrence Wong on Thursday (April 22).
In addition, people who have recently travelled to India and have not completed their 14-day stay-home notice (SHN) by 11.59pm on Thursday night will have to complete their additional seven-day SHN at a dedicated facility rather than their places of residence.
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India's daily COVID-19 death toll hits new record as shortages bite
People queue up for COVID-19 vaccine in Mumbai, India, on Apr 22, 2021. (Photo: AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
India's daily COVID-19 death toll passed a new record on Saturday (Apr 24) as the government battled to get oxygen supplies to hospitals overwhelmed by the hundreds of thousands of new daily cases.
Queues of COVID-19 patients and their fearful relatives are building up outside hospitals in major cities across India, the new world pandemic hotspot which has now reported nearly 1 million new cases in three days.
Another 2,624 deaths, a new daily record, were reported, taking the official toll to nearly 190,000 since the pandemic started. More than 340,000 new cases were also reported, taking India's total to 16.5 million, second only to the United States. But many experts are predicting the current wave will not peak for at least three weeks and that the real death and case numbers are much higher.
Singapore to block all non-resident entry, transit from India 'until further notice' from Friday night
SINGAPORE is closing its doors indefinitely to all non-residents who have been in India in the last two weeks, starting from 11.59pm on Friday night. The border curbs came amid a fresh Covid-19 outbreak at a dormitory for foreign labourers, including infections among workers who had already recovered from earlier bouts of the virus.
"There is no evidence that the recent cases at the Westlite Woodlands Dormitory are linked to the new strain from India," the Ministry of Health (MOH) noted in a statement on Thursday. "But many of the arrivals from India are workers in the construction, marine and process (CMP) sectors. There is still a risk that a leak may happen, and cause another wave of infection in the dormitories."
As such, Singapore will further tighten its border measures with India, it added.
Singapore to disallow entry for all long-term pass holders, short-term visitors with recent travel history to India
All long-term pass holders and short-term visitors with recent travel history to India within the last 14 days will not be allowed entry into Singapore from Apr 24, announced the Ministry of Health (MOH) on Thursday (Apr 22). This includes visitors who transit in India, and all who had obtained prior approval for entry into Singapore, he said.
India's COVID-19 situation has worsened in recent days, with daily records of new cases.
Noting that many of the new arrivals from India work in the construction, marine and process sectors and live in the dormitories, COVID-19 multi-ministry task force co-chair, Lawrence Wong, said on Thursday: “We know that this major move will have an impact on our construction, marine and process sectors. And many local SMEs and contractors will be badly impacted.
Fewer travellers from India to be allowed into Singapore due to Covid-19
The entry approvals are being reduced in response to the worsening Covid-19 situation in India
Entry approvals for non-Singapore citizens and non-permanent residents are being reduced with immediate effect, in response to the worsening Covid-19 situation in India and the emergence of new virus variants, the Ministry of Health announced on Tuesday (April 20).
From 11.59pm on Thursday, all travellers from India will also have to serve an additional seven-day stay-home notice (SHN) at their place of residence, following the usual 14-day SHN at a dedicated facility. Those who have yet to complete their 14-day SHN by that time will also have to serve the extra seven days.
The travellers will be tested for Covid-19 at the end of the initial 14-day SHN and at the end of the additional seven-day SHN. Migrant workers arriving from India who work in the construction, marine and process sectors will continue to be subjected to a 21-day SHN. These measures will minimise importation risks and protect public health, the MOH said.
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Netizens urge a ban on flights from India; slam experts who say it is not yet necessary
All of the passengers who tested positive flew into Hong Kong on a flight run by Indian operator Vistara on 4 Apr 2021 (Source: AFP)
Expert say it is not yet necessary to ban flights from India or tighten social distancing or gathering guidelines, according to a report by The Straits Times (ST) on Thursday (22 April).
This follows as several countries around the world, such as Hong Kong as New Zealand, have imposed stricter measures on incoming travelers from India as the number of daily cases in the country continue to soar, reaching a world-record high of over 300,000 cases a day today. Both countries have banned flights from India. However, Singapore has not.
On Tuesday, Singapore announced new safety measures including fewer entry approvals for non-permanent residents coming in from India where a second wave is believed to be driven by a variant of the COVID-19 virus with a double mutation. These new measures include a 7-day isolation at home after the 14-days of serving Stay-Home Notices (SHN) at a dedicated facility upon arrival.
Countries, including S'pore, on guard against India's new 'double-mutant' Covid-19 variant
India now accounts for one of three new cases in the world.PHOTO: EPA-EFE
A new "double-mutant' variant that is fueling India's terrifying second wave has led to various countries, including Singapore, taking measures to guard against it.
Called B1617, the new variant is the first to have two mutations E484Q and L452R, which have been seen in other variants.
It has not yet been classified as a "variant of concern" - a term used for other variants like the B117 that was first detected in the United Kingdom and found here - but it is proving to be worrying.
India's Covid-19 surge hits new record of over 2,000 deaths in a day as oxygen supply runs short
India’s brutal new Covid-19 outbreak set new records on Wednesday (April 21) with more than 2,000 deaths in 24 hours as hospitals in New Delhi ran perilously low on oxygen.
India has been in the grips of a second wave of infections blamed on lax government rules and a new “double mutant” virus variant, adding almost 3.5 million new cases this month alone.
Health Ministry data on Wednesday showed 295,000 new cases in 24 hours and 2,023 fatalities, among the world’s biggest daily totals of the pandemic and on a par with numbers seen in the United States in January.
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'Double mutant' Covid-19 strain raises concerns in India
More countries are snapping travel links with India as it records a devastating and unprecedented spike in new coronavirus infections. The United States and Britain placed travel restrictions on India on Monday (April 19), with the US advising travellers against heading to the South Asian country even if they are fully vaccinated against Covid-19.
Hong Kong has already banned flights from India for two weeks beginning on Tuesday and New Zealand has an ongoing suspension on travel from India, including on its own citizens, until April 28.
Singapore also said on Tuesday it is reducing with immediate effect the number of entry approvals for those who are not Singapore citizens or permanent residents, but have recent travel history to India.
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India records world's biggest single-day rise in COVID-19 cases
India recorded the world's highest daily tally of 314,835 COVID-19 infections on Thursday (Apr 22) as a second wave of the pandemic raised new fears about the ability of crumbling health services to cope.
Health officials across northern and western India including the capital, New Delhi, said they were in crisis, with most hospitals full and running out of oxygen. Doctors in some places were advising patients to stay at home while a crematorium in the eastern city of Muzaffarpur said it was being overwhelmed with bodies and grieving families had to wait their turn. "Right now there are no beds, no oxygen. Everything else is secondary," Shahid Jameel, a virologist and director of the Trivedi School of Biosciences at Ashoka University, told Reuters.
"The infrastructure is crumbling."
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350 cases of COVID variants in Singapore, including 8 local so far
A total of 350 local and imported cases of various COVID-19 variants have been detected in Singapore as of Tuesday (20 April), according to data from the Ministry of Health (MOH). These include eight local cases of two variants – seven cases of the UK variant and one case of the South African variant – along with 342 imported cases with various strains.
The ministry was on Thursday responding to media queries by Yahoo News Singapore on its latest update on variant cases in Singapore since end-January, and its first confirmation of other variants detected here apart from the UK strain. The MOH did not specify in its latest update when the cases were detected.
Yahoo News Singapore on Wednesday reported that the first case of the Indian variant – or B.1.617 – in Singapore was detected on 26 February, while the first case of the South African variant – or B.1.351 – was detected on 7 February, according to the Global Initiative on Sharing All Influenza Data (GISAID), the world's largest database of novel coronavirus genome sequences.
Singapore confirms first case of Wuhan virus on 23 Jan 2020
A China national has tested positive for the Wuhan virus in Singapore, with another likely to have the virus.
The 66-year-old man, a Wuhan resident, arrived in Singapore with nine travelling companions on Monday (Jan 20), and stayed at Shangri-La's Rasa Sentosa resort, the Ministry of Health said at a briefing on Thursday night (23 Jan 2020).
All the rooms at the hotel where the man and his travelling companions stayed in have been sanitised and sealed off.
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