The CDC Recommends Men Stop Having Sex With Their Pregnant Partners

Authorities in Brazil said on Friday Zika has been detected in patients’ saliva and urine, adding to the concern over the spread of the virus, while USA officials offered new guidance on sex for people returning from Zika-hit regions.

This is why the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that pregnant women and women trying to become pregnant postpone travel to areas with high rates of Zika.

“Although no one has contracted Zika virus in California, mosquito bites can still be harmful and the public should take steps to protect themselves”, Dr. Karen Smith, the state’s public health officer, said in a statement.

Since the report of the virus transmitted through sexual contact as been confirmed, the CDC has advised people who have visited Zika affected areas to use condoms, especially in the case of pregnant women.

Spain has confirmed that a pregnant woman has been diagnosed with the Zika virus – the first such case in Europe.

“I wish we knew more about Zika today, I wish we could do more about Zika today”, said CDC Directer Tom Frieden in a morning press conference. Aspirin and NSAIDs should be avoided until dengue can be ruled out to reduce the risk of hemorrhage (bleeding). “Research is now underway to answer this question as soon as possible”.

Major tour operators including Thomas Cook and Tui are allowing pregnant customers who are due to fly to an infected area to change their trips free of change for travel up to April 30. Anyone who travels to countries where these diseases exist should take standard precautions against mosquito bites, such as using an EPA-registered insect repellent, wearing long sleeves and trousers, and staying in places with air conditioning or that use window and door screens to keep mosquitoes outside. Frieden says CDC is working with scientists in Brazil and elsewhere to find out.

First, it’s important to point out that only about one in five people infected with Zika virus gets sick. Brazil has the most Zika cases with more than a million, and Colombia has more than 20,000, World Health Organization said.

Frieden said CDC adjusted its advice to women who don’t have symptoms of Zika infection, because it’s hard to test them all and then to give them ultrasounds every few weeks.

The Zika Virus is most commonly associated with Latin America and the Caribbean, because that’s where the outbreak is the worst.

Until now, cases of Zika-linked microcephaly have been mainly in Brazil and in Hawaii, where a woman who had travelled to Brazil recently had a baby with the birth defect.