Zika virus blamed for brain damage in Hawaiian newborn

The United States’ first case of the mysterious Zika virus has been confirmed by Hawaiian officials and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, that state’s health department said Friday.

There have been 26 travel-related cases of Zika virus in the United States since 2007, but no locally acquired cases so far, Petersen said. The most common symptoms of Zika virus disease are fever, rash, joint pain, and conjunctivitis (red eyes).

CDC has issued a travel notice advising people traveling to affected areas in South America, Central America, the Caribbean, or Mexico to protect themselves from mosquito bites to reduce their risk of infection with Zika virus. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say that the virus was a rare disease in the past and it might be linked to various birth defects.

After that, the incidence gradually fell until November, when it started to increase again, which is considered normal because warmer climates favor the reproduction of dengue-transmitting mosquitos, Aedes aegypti.

The Zika virus is spread by the Aedes mosquito – the same one that carries other diseases that infect humans, including yellow fever, West Nile, chikungunya and dengue.

In Brazil, more than 3,500 cases of microcephaly were recorded between October and January, just as the Zika epidemic was spreading.

Dr Petersen warned that the link is not yet definite and said that a team of CDC investigators is travelling to Brazil in a few weeks to conduct more studies and learn what risks face pregnant women.

Here’s a rundown of important information about the Zika virus and how it is spread. Sometimes there is so much brain damage that the fetus or newborn can’t survive; in other cases, children suffer seizures, vision problems and cognitive impairment. The illness is usually mild, running its course in a matter of days.

“There’s no indication at this point that there’s any Zika virus circulating in Hawaii”, CDC spokesman Tom Skinner told Reuters. The country welcomed about 656,000 US visitors in 2014, the latest year for which data is available. The WHO lists 13 countries in the Americas, including Puerto Rico, where transmission has been reported.

Health Minister Marcelo Castro said priority for testing would be given to pregnant women.

The Zika virus causes a painful fever in about 20 percent of those infected, which lasts up to a week.

It is also not known whether the virus alone causes microcephaly or if it happens only if the mother has a previous infection, such as with dengue virus. Since May, more than 1.5 million Brazilians have been infected.

Osterholm says Zika transmission is likely to come to the mainland U.S. “We shouldn’t be surprised”, he says. People traveling to any of the 14 areas covered under the warning should make sure windows in their lodgings have screens and strictly follow steps to prevent mosquito bites during the trip, including wearing long sleeves, long trousers and applying insect repellents containing substances like DEET.

Currently, there is no vaccine to prevent Zika and there is no known medicine to treat it. Four in five people who acquire Zika may have no symptoms.