New Zika Virus Guidelines Expected from CDC

Since Zika virus illess is usually mild, four out of five people never know they have it and when symptoms do occur, they generally last a few days or at most, a week, according to the CDC. However, its link to birth defects in babies whose mothers were infected sparked the World Health Organization to declare a public health emergency.

It also stressed that “the diagnosed cases of Zika virus in Spain… don’t risk spreading the virus in our country as they are imported cases”.

The discovery opens “new paradigms for understanding the transmission routes of the Zika virus”, she said.

But since October, Brazil has reported 404 confirmed cases of microcephaly where the baby’s head is abnormally small – up from 147 in 2014 – plus 3,670 suspected cases.

“However, I’m one to believe that unless there’s more proof of that and we verify that, as of right now, it’s just one case. In addition, asymptomatic pregnant women who have traveled to Zika-affected areas should be tested for the Zika virus between 2-12 weeks post travel”.

Federal health officials say the Texas patient represents the first case during this outbreak in which the Zika virus was transmitted to a non-traveler in the continental United States.

Scientists are still trying to determine, for instance, how long the virus remains in the semen of a man who has recovered from Zika.

But it doesn’t necessarily mean you can get sick from contact with an infected person’s saliva or urine, said CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

“Up to now, the diagnosed cases of Zika virus in Spain… don’t risk spreading the virus in our country as they are imported cases”, it said.

Men with a pregnant partner who live in or have traveled to an area of active Zika transmission and their partner should consistently and correctly use condoms during sex or abstain for the duration of the pregnancy, the CDC said.

Pregnant women should receive routine prenatal care, including an ultrasound during the second trimester.