Woman in Rockland County Contracts Zika Virus

Since the report of the virus transmitted through sexual contact as been confirmed, the CDC has advised people who have visited Zika affected areas to use condoms, especially in the case of pregnant women. For non-pregnant women and men with a non-pregnant partner traveling to Zika-affected areas, the CDC recommends condoms or abstention.

USA health experts cautioned Friday that the apparent discovery of the Zika virus in saliva and urine from people in Brazil does not necessarily mean the virus can be spread by more casual contact with infected people, such as through kissing.

The CDC said it has yet to see data from the Brazilian research, and more work is needed before recommendations can be made based on the findings.

The advice, arising from an apparent case of sexual transmission of the virus in the Dallas area, comes just 2 weeks after the CDC’s first cautions to pregnant women about travel to parts of South and Central America. Pregnant women experiencing symptoms should be immediately tested, and those not, are recommended to when they begin prenatal care. And no pregnant woman should travel to any of the affected countries while she is pregnant.

The CDC said the link between Zika virus and severe birth defects is growing stronger by the day. The World Health Organization said that between January 2014 and February 5, 2016, a total of 33 countries have reported indigenous circulation of Zika virus.

The virus may be present in a form that is incapable of spreading, or in such low levels that transmission is impossible or unlikely, several scientists said.

“The presence of the active Zika virus has been found in saliva and urine”, Paulo Gadelha, head of the Fiocruz institute in Rio de Janeiro, told journalists. Of medical samples collected in Salvador, in northeast Brazil, one third will remain in Brazil and the rest will go to the United States for research, the ministry said.

The two people infected are women in their twenties who recently traveled to the Zika risk regions.

“I wish we knew more about Zika today”. After infection, Zika virus might persist in semen when it is no longer detectable in blood. “We take all reports seriously, but we need more information including the methodology of the study”. The primary concern of public health officials is that the virus may be linked with a serious birth defect called microcephaly if the mother is infected during pregnancy. The best way, overall, to avoid Zika is to prevent mosquito bites by wearing long sleeves and long trousers, use insect repellents, and if you’re in a country where Zika virus has been found, stay in places with air conditioning, and window and door screens.