DE health leaders shed little light on first Zika case

Queensland health authorities have urged pregnant women not to travel to places where there have been Zika outbreaks.

CLEVELAND, Ohio – A second Northeast Ohio Zika virus case has been confirmed in a 21-year-old Stark County man, the Ohio Department of Health said Tuesday evening.

A Yolo County resident has tested positive for Zika virus, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed Wednesday.

The federal government has been monitoring the Zika virus and working with domestic and worldwide health partners to alert healthcare providers and the public about the virus. Because while health officials say the chances of a rampant U.S. Zika outbreak is small, they say some local spread is likely.

“There is no vaccine available for Zika virus so it’s important for Ohioans traveling to affected areas to take steps to prevent mosquito bites”, said Dr. Mary DiOrio, medical director of the Ohio Department of Health.

Australia’s 450 athletes and about 300 officials will be issued mosquito repellent – the best known defense against Zika virus-carrying mosquitoes. At least twelve cases in the United States have now been confirmed by the CDC. Even though it’s not enough to prove that the mosquito-borne disease directly causes microcephaly, scientists believe what they found is a big clue in finding the link between the two, per the Associated Press.

Officials did not elaborate on which county the woman lives in, but on Janurary 28 Josephine County Health Officials reported two suspected cases – a mother and an infant. There is now no vaccine or treatment for Zika. But the dangers are more real for women who are pregnant or intending to become pregnant, the CDC and other organizations stress. People who are not immunosuppressed- namely those who are not pregnant, are healthy, and who are not elderly or very young-will experience only mild symptoms like muscle and joint pain, and a fever, after being infected with Zika. It’s spread to 20 countries in Central and South America and the Caribbean, including Mexico. The virus has been passed from mosquitoes to people in the USA territory of Puerto Rico, she said. It’s warning pregnant women not to travel to affected areas. “So, the occurrence of sexual transmission may be new, but it’s not that surprising given that we’re dealing with a new strain of this virus”. The Aedes albopictus species has also been identified as a potential carrier. “It makes sense for women who are pregnant to think about whether they really need to travel to an area where this is circulating”.