Zika Virus, Linked To Birth Defect, Seen As Spreading: 10-Point Guide

Danish health authorities said the patient from Denmark travelled to South and Central America where the disease has taken hold.

A health worker stands in the Sambadrome as he sprays insecticide to combat the Aedes aegypti mosquitoes that transmits the Zika virus in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2016.

According to Castro, the Zika virus is one of the most infamous public health scares in the history of Brazil.

“The role of Aedes mosquitoes in transmitting Zika is documented and well understood”, the World Health Organization said, but also warned of rare cases of transmission via sexual contact and blood.

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease has begun researching and testing drugs that may treat the Zika virus, in the event of an outbreak in America. It is a birth defect where babies’ brains have not developed properly during pregnancy. Infected pregnant women could give birth to babies with deformed heads that are abnormally small in size.

Soldiers are expected to go from home to home throughout the country starting February 13 to hand out leaflets that will inform residents on how to stop the spread of the Zika virus by eradicating mosquito breeding grounds, BBC News reported. If travel can not be avoided, they should talk to their doctors and strictly follow their recommendations on how to prevent mosquito bites.

“However, this is the time of year when more people do travel to warmer climates and countries where Zika virus is found. Pregnant women are strongly encouraged to consider postponing travel to Zika-affected countries while pregnant”.

Dr. Marcos Espinal, Director of PAHO/WHO’s Department of Communicable Disease, said the Zika virus is a new virus that the population of the Americas has no immunity to. An individual with the Zika virus might exhibit flu-like symptoms. Few weeks after coming back to Colorado both of them got sick and few days later Foy’s wife showed the same symptoms. The first hint that Zika virus could be sexually transmitted was reported in 2008.