Kingdom free of Zika virus

The committee also asked the National Institutes of Health and Health and Human Services Department for an update on Zika – a virus that hadn’t reached the Americas until spring of a year ago – and promised to hold a hearing in the coming weeks.

“The clusters of microcephaly and other neurological complications constitute an extraordinary event and a public health threat to other parts of the world”, said WHO Director-General Dr. Margaret Chan.

The Zika outbreak is another issue with which Olympic officials will have to deal, and given the potentially severe risks of the virus, they should take every precaution necessary to protect the health of athletes and fans alike.

The WHO International Health Regulations Emergency Committee also says the association between the Zika virus and microcephaly constitutes an “extraordinary event”.

There could be 4 million cases of Zika in the Americas in the next year, but no recommendations were made to restrict travel or trade. Of the 4,180 suspected cases of microcephaly, only 270 have been confirmed (462 have been rejected), and only six of those are confirmed to be related to Zika, according to Brazil’s most recent bulletin on the situation.

In addition, pregnant women who have been exposed to Zika virus should be counseled and followed for birth outcomes based on the best available information and national practice and policies.

She called for a coordinated worldwide response to minimize the threats in affected countries and reduce the risk of further spread.

Generally, a disease outbreak must meet two key criteria for the WHO to declare it a “public health emergency of global concern”, or PHEIC. The CDC is warning pregnant women against traveling to those locales.

While Zika is spreading very rapidly in other parts of the world, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it expects limited outbreaks of Zika here at home. Even the evidence that the virus is the cause of birth defects is inconclusive and causal, hence some health officials are cautious about painting too dire a picture.

Public Health England (PHE) has said men in the United Kingdom should wear condoms for a month after returning from any of the countries affected by Zika.

Zika is fairly similar to the viruses that cause yellow fever and dengue. Derek Gatherer, a lecturer at Lancaster University, said the WHO’s move was “like a declaration of war, in this case on Zika virus”.

Zika causes flu-like symptoms and a rash, and is so mild that it goes undetected in 70 to 80 per cent of cases.