Four Canadians infected with Zika virus after travel

The Zika virus had been detected in Jambi during an outbreak of dengue fever that hit the province from December 2014 to April 2015, said Eijkman Biological Molecular Institute deputy director Herawati Sudoyo as reported by kompas.com on Friday. One metro Detroit couple expecting a baby just returned from Brazil, where there’s been a sharp rise in Zika cases and concern.

In a statement, the commission warned of the risk of imported Zika cases, even though no case has been reported in China.

“At this time we don’t have any Zika virus cases here in SC, so the threat is very, very low for any transmission of Zika virus here”, says Dr. Teresa Foo, a DHEC medical consultant in the Immunizations & Acute Disease Epidemiology Divisions.

The patient, who lives in Boston, contracted the virus while traveling outside the US, the commission said.

Taylor told a news conference his agency is monitoring the situation as the virus spreads, particularly in South America.

(It was traced to the Zika forest, hence the name.) Until previous year, the Zika virus was mostly confined to Asia and Africa, but then it made the leap to the Western hemisphere.

There is no treatment for Zika infection and a vaccine suitable for widespread use is months, if not years away, developers are warning.

With 20,000 people confirmed as having the virus, Colombia is now the second most infected country in the world after Brazil.

While there are no confirmed cases of Zika virus in Pennsylvania, the state Health Department says it’s investigating 6 to 8 cases.

DSHS recommends travelers avoid mosquito bites while overseas and for seven days after returning, in case they have been exposed to Zika virus.

The symptoms are mild. Those who do feel the symptoms, which can last, could come down with an acute onset of fever, a rash, joint pain and conjunctivitis.

The mosquito-borne virus has been linked to babies being born with abnormally small brains.

Recently, there has been a link between the virus and serious birth defects, which is why the CDC has imposed travel restriction for pregnant women. Those areas include Mexico and parts of Central and South America.