More pregnant women should be tested for Zika — CDC

NEW YORK (AP) – U.S. health officials issued guidelines Friday to prevent the sexual transmission of the Zika virus, telling men who have been to outbreak areas to use condoms during sex with pregnant women. After confirming a sexually transmitted case of Zika virus in Dallas County, Texas, the CDC released guidelines calling for men who have traveled to affected areas to use condoms during sex with a pregnant partner or abstain from sex for the duration of the pregnancy.

Health officials in United States on Friday said that the discovery of the presence of Zika virus in urine and saliva samples of some infected people in Brazil does not necessarily suggest that the virus can spread through casual contact with the infected person.

“The science is not clear on how long the risk should be avoided”, the CDC said. The virus is known to exist in tropical areas like Africa, the Americas, southern Asia and western Pacific.

Thousands of children in Brazil have been born with shrunken heads in the past year – a birth defect that could result from Zika infection, though a definitive cause has not yet been proven.

Meanwhile, Colombian health officials said three people had died of Guillain-Barre syndrome after contracting the Zika virus.

The Zika virus is spreading rapidly through many parts of Latin America and the Caribbean. Researchers have identified evidence of Zika infection in 17 of these cases, either in the baby or in the mother, but have not confirmed that Zika can cause microcephaly. “I understand that this is a stressful situation for women and families, and particularly for women who are pregnant”.

On Monday, the World Health Organization declared the explosive spread of Zika virus to be a global emergency, as it is suspected of being responsible for an increase in congenital defects, even though definitive scientific proof has not been obtained. It has also been found in urine and saliva.

“For us scientists, it’s extremely challenging to understand Zika virus”.

The link hasn’t been confirmed but the possibility has prompted health officials to take cautionary steps to protect fetuses from the virus. Right now Florida has 448 kits to test people who currently have the virus, and the Governor is authorizing the Department of Health to purchase 4,000 more.

Gadelha also stressed that the Aedes aegpyti mosquito, which also spreads dengue, chikungunya and yellow fever, remains the virus’ main vector and said the fight against the mosquito should be a top priority.