Multiple Cases of Zika in USA and Canada

While the World Health Organization plans to convene an worldwide meeting on the spread of the Zika virus, the CDC says that although limited local transmission of Zika is possible in the United States, it’s unlikely that widespread transmission will occur in the mainland. Patton, the Sioux Falls Health Program Coordinator who oversees mosquito control, says it is having a resurgence.

Brazil’s president has signed a measure allowing health officials access to any building to eradicate breeding grounds for a mosquito spreading the Zika virus.

Pregnant women have been advised not to travel to certain areas to reduce the risk of contracting the virus, including Ecuador, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Saint Martin and Mexico, among others.

Zika stays in a person’s blood stream for a few days, and most people will not even notice it because the symptoms are so mild.

He said surveillance in clinics and hospitals would be increased for cases with signs of the Zika virus, and on patients with travel history to the 22 countries.

Epidemiologist Jussi Sane at the National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) told ABC News that a Finnish tourist was infected by the Zika virus after visiting the Maldives last summer.

The three who are being tested had traveled to one of the 24 countries with widespread Zika, Foo said.

This mosquito also carries the viruses that cause Dengue and Chikungunya which are of great concern in tropical countries like India. Currently, there are 35 cases of Zika in the US – all acquired outside the country.

Although research is still underway, significant evidence in Brazil shows a link between Zika infections and rising cases of microcephaly, a neurological disorder in which infants are born with smaller craniums and brains.

For now, there is no vaccine against the virus Zika. “As of today, cases have been reported in 23 countries and territories in the region”, Dr. Chan said, promising quick action from the W.H.O.

In a breakthrough in medicine, it is said that a vaccine of Zika virus is being developed and is likely to be launched by the end of this year.