US Adds More Countries To Zika Travel Alert

But the CDC says it can be spread from pregnant women to fetuses and has been linked to a birth defect called microcephaly, in which babies are born with abnormally small heads and sometimes brain damage.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued initial travel warnings to pregnant women last week, adding eight more places to the list on Friday.

Dr Graham Fry, medical director at the Tropical Medical Bureau, said that in 2015 there were a “colossal” 40,000 cases of Zika in French Polynesia and, of these cases, there were no reports of microcephaly.

“We’re just seeing the sheer size, the magnitude brings those rare cases above the radar whereas in the past the outbreaks didn’t involve almost as many people”, said Scott Weaver, director of the Institute for Human Infections and Immunity at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston.

According to the statement, the Zika virus can’t be spread by casual person-to-person contact and the symptoms of infection are usually very mild. Babies with the condition often have smaller brains that might not have developed properly. “Referral to a maternal-fetal medicine or infectious disease specialist with expertise in pregnancy management is recommended”.

The price of mosquito repellent has risen in Brazil, where Health Minister Marcelo Castro said a “war” against the Aedes aegypti type, which carries dengue, chicungunya and Zika, was failing. Zika could potentially follow the same growth pattern, which means that it could see significant growth quickly. “Because there is no treatment for Zika virus at this time, women should be counseled about all options available to them”.

The three cases are believed to be the first to be confirmed inside the country. As a result, authorities in Brazil, Colombia and El Salvador have advised women against becoming pregnant during the outbreak. But then came the spike in microcephaly: Since October the country has recorded 3,893 suspected cases, compared with fewer than 150 for all of 2014.

Meanwhile, U.S. health officials said Friday that three people in NY state, including one from Queens, had tested positive for Zika.

But Guevara said Ecuador is “controlling and working” to stop the virus spreading to pregnant women by instructing hospitals and clinics to carry out ultrasounds and prioritize suspicious cases.

The CDC says doctors should ask all pregnant patients about recent travel and specific symptoms, such as a sudden fever or rash.