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What is Zika virus and is it contagious?
Posted On Feb 05 2016
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The race is on to find a vaccine, as the mosquito-born Zika virus takes hold in the Americas.
There are about 3,700 cases of the birth defect microcephaly with strongly-suspected links to Zika. “In both cases the spouse is pregnant, so it’s very prudent for people who are pregnant or are considering getting pregnant maybe consider postponing their trip or going somewhere else”.
The Zika virus crisis continues to bounce around the globe with no known Zika vaccine or cure once infected.
The Virginia Department of Health has confirmed the first reported Zika virus infection in a Virginia resident. There has been one case reportedly spread through sexual contact. But, she’s concerned about her family in Panama, where there are growing concerns about the Zika virus and pregnant women there.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released guidelines Tuesday for pediatricians treating infants, whose mothers could have been exposed to the virus.
Metro Health officials confirmed to KENS 5 that six people are being tested for the Zika virus in Bexar County.
The World Health Organisation has said as many as 4 million people in the Americas may become infected. An increase in Guillain-Barré syndrome was noted during an outbreak of Zika virus in French Polynesia in 2014. Now that it’s potentially linked to a serious birth defect – babies born with microcephaly (smaller heads), which affects brain development – there is much more concern.
“There’s primarily 20 countries in Central America, South America and the Carribean”, Smit explained. “We will continue to update the public with information on the Zika virus as it evolves”.
The WHO Director-General, Margaret Chan, said this at a meeting on Friday with the agency’s executive board in Geneva, adding that the spread of the mosquito-borne disease had gone from a mild threat to one of alarming proportions. Furthermore, for most of those who do happen to find themselves with a Zika infection in our region, the fallout is likely to be low.
