The Health Ministry has identified at least 40 new suspected cases of Zika but these have yet to be confirmed by the Institute for Medical Research (IMR), said Minister Dr S Subramaniam.

Up to now, the number of confirmed cases remained at four, he told reporters after launching the MIC Gallery in conjunction with the party's 70th anniversary, at the party headquarters in Kuala Lumpur today.

The first confirmed case was a 58-year-old woman from Klang, Selangor, who had returned from Zika-infected Singapore and the second was a man in Sabah who had contracted the disease locally.

The third case was a pregnant woman from Taman Desa Harmoni in Johor Baru and the fourth, her husband who works in Singapore.

Subramaniam said the ministry was awaiting a complete report from the IMR to determine if the 40 or so suspects were infected.

- Bernama