KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia remains free from monkeypox after tests on nine suspected cases turned out negative for the virus.
Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said all non-Malaysian travelers who enter the country must fill the travelers card on the MySejahtera application.
He said travelers from countries that have detected monkeypox cases would be prompted to look out for symptoms of the disease through pop-up messages sent via MySejahtera.
"Travelers who arrive from countries with monkeypox cases are advised to monitor their health status for 21 days from their date of arrival.
"Common symptoms for monkeypox include fever, fatigue, headache, rash that appears on the face that gradually spreads to other parts of the body, muscle and/or joint aches, backaches, muscle cramps, and swollen lymph nodes.
"Since May 1 until July 23, a total of 531,360 travelers arrived from countries with monkeypox cases and the MySejahtera application has issued the Monkeypox Health Alert to them," he said today.
Khairy made the announcement after World Health Organisation (WHO) director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, on Saturday, declared the monkey outbreak as a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC).
The PHEIC is the highest alert that the world health body can issue.
Monkeypox, previously endemic in several west and central African nations, was first detected outside the region in early May.
As of June 17, 42 countries have recorded 2,103 cases and one fatality was reported.
However, in less than two months, the case counts saw an eight-fold increase. As of July 22, Khairy said 16,836 monkeypox cases had been detected across 74 countries and the death toll increased to five.
The fatality rate of monkeypox, he said, was 0.03 per cent.
Though the country was free from the disease, Khairy said the Health Ministry had taken several steps to strengthen preventive measures against monkeypox.
This, he said, included sentinel surveillance in several public and private clinics to monitor rash and skin lesion cases.
"The ministry has also increased lab capacity from two labs to 12 labs, including eight government facilities and four private ones.
"We have also notified all healthcare facilities to immediately notify suspected and confirmed monkeypox cases so that the necessary control and prevention steps, such as identifying close contacts, can be taken," he said.
Khairy said the ministry would also beef up surveillance measures at international entry points and collaborate with various ministries and agencies to strengthen the preventive measures.
Although recent reports indicated that monkeypox transmissions primarily occur through sexual intercourse between males, Khairy warned that transmissions could also occur through skin contact between family members.
He also urged premises that provided spa, massage and other services that involved skin contact to maintain their personal hygiene and keep their premises safe from monkeypox infections.
"Employees who display monkeypox symptoms are advised to take leave and immediately go for health check-ups," he said.