El Salvador advises women to delay pregnancies due to virus

If you’re pregnant, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is urging you to avoid traveling to countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, as a mosquito-born virus called Zika is putting expectant women at risk.

There are no known cases of someone contracting the virus in Florida, although the Aedes mosquito, which also transmits dengue fever and chikungunya, is found in the state.

The Brazilian government says more babies than intially estimated have been deformed by microcephaly, thought to be a side-effect of the Zika virus.

There are 96 suspected cases of pregnant women contracting the virus in El Salvador.

The latest figures from Brazil’s health ministry show a further rise in the number of babies born with microcephaly, a rare brain defect that causes abnormally small heads in newborns. Numerous fetuses with the condition are miscarried, and some die at the time of birth or soon after it. The infants, who manage to survive, tend to suffer from health and developmental issues.

Although Zika is not contagious, CDC officials warned that infected travelers can bring the virus back to the USA and transmit the virus to a mosquito, which could infect other people in the country. Pregnant women, women trying to become pregnant, or women who are thinking about becoming pregnant and must travel to one of these areas should talk with their doctor or other health care provider first and strictly follow steps to avoid mosquito bites during the trip. Officials hope local labs will soon be able to process 20,000 Zika tests per month, compared with the current 1,000.

“It presents very similarly with a fever, with headache, especially pain behind the eyeballs, sometimes redness of the eyes and aches and pains, sometimes a full body rash”, said Dr. Park.

Bell stressed that there are still many unknowns about the Zika virus.

– 80 percent of people who are infected with Zika virus don’t have symptoms. Those infected with the virus usually experience symptoms within two to seven days after being bitten by an infected mosquito.

The Colombian Health Ministry said in a statement that the recommendation is likely to last until July and advised pregnant women to refrain to travel to higher areas.