Poor women should not carry the burden of the Zika virus

Rio de Janeiro (AFP) – Brazilian researchers said Monday that the discovery of Zika in the brains of babies with microcephaly adds to growing evidence of a link between the mosquito-transmitted virus and the birth defect. More than 200,000 army, navy and air force troops are fanning out across Brazil to show people how to eliminate the Aedes aegypti mosquito that spreads the Zika virus, which many health officials believe is linked to severe birth defects.

“In the area where most sick persons live, a chemical larvicide producing malformations in mosquitoes has been applied for 18 months, and that this poison [pyroproxifen] is applied by the state on drinking water used by the affected population”, a report says. But in wake of Zika virus, the state health ministry plans to include the details about head circumference of all the children. Until the link could be confirmed, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that pregnant women in any trimester practice special precautions to prevent being infected with the virus.

It can cause mild fever, rash and red eyes, although around 80 percent of people infected have no symptoms.

David Ige, governor of the islands, said that the proclamation was “a preventative measure” as there have been no cases of the virus being transmitted in the state so far.

At present, Brazil has charted over one and a half million cases of the Zika virus. They are also advised to cover exposed areas of the skin, sleep in air-conditioned screened rooms and use bed nets in areas exposed outdoors.

“There have been no locally acquired Zika cases in the U.S. or Hawaii, and we’d like to keep it that way”, said Mr Ige.

The good news, however, is that UGA has recently joined the Zika fight and begun collaborating with GeoVax Labs, Inc., to develop and test a vaccine to protect against the Zika virus.

MANILA A minister in the Philippines has urged women to delay pregnancy until more is known about the mosquito-borne Zika virus raging in Latin America, even though the Asian country’s only reported case of zika was four years ago.