Peru reports first patient carrying the Zika virus

The CDC says all pregnant women who have traveled to Latin America recently should see their doctor and get tested for the Zika virus.

He said there were no indications if there had been some work done by some groups looking at the feasibility of a Zika virus vaccine.

The LDS Church will have its mission presidents provide guidance to missionaries about how to avoid the Zika virus, a mosquito-borne disease that is “spreading explosively” across the Americas.

So far, there have been no cases of local transmission of Zika in the continental United States, but there have been some cases among returning travelers, CDC reports.

Zika is mild in most people, sometimes causing headache, a rash, joint pain or red eyes. “Pregnant women are strongly encouraged to consider postponing travel to Zika-affected countries while pregnant”. If it does, then the virus could spread locally.

State public health officials say an estimated 80 percent of infected people don’t experience symptoms.

Research on other viruses can tell us what climate change could mean for Zika.

The Cuban Health authorities confirmed Friday that there are still no cases of the Zika virus on the island. After a surge of babies born were born there with small heads and underdeveloped brains, researchers are anxious the virus could be linked to the birth defects. An investigation into the relationship between the Zika virus and increased risk for microcephaly is ongoing. It not only means mosquitoes can incubate the virus, but also that people are also more likely to be outside and have exposed skin for mosquitoes to feast on. “I think it is a very big deal for pregnant women”, Dr. Ray Pontzer, a Pittsburgh area infectious disease specialist, said of the outbreak.

“We’ve not seen a major outbreak” in the continental U.S., Fauci said, adding that the NIH and its counterparts are not taking the issue lightly. The yellow fever mosquito has spread most Zika cases but in the U.S.is common only in Florida, along the Gulf Coast and in Hawaii.

The mosquitoes that carry the virus, Aedes albopictus, are not found in Pennsylvania; however another species of mosquito found in the commonwealth has the ability to carry it. Robinson said the state will “double down” on its efforts to track mosquitoes when the weather warms up.

Zika is spread via infected mosquitoes and is known to cause severe birth defects.