This combination of images provided by the American Medical Association shows abnormalities at upper left and upper right on the back areas of the inner eyes of a 1-month-old boy diagnosed with microcephaly due to a possible Zika congenital infection.
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There is a risk Zika could be spread locally if it was introduced to Hong Kong, the statement said, because Aedes Albopictus mosquitoes, which transmit the virus, live there.
Travel insurance will not cover people cancelling trips to areas hard-hit by the Zika virus, says the president of the Travel Health Insurance Association of Canada.
Patients positive Zika virus results are seen on the computer screen at The Gorgas Memorial institute for Health Studies laboratory as they conduct a research on preventing the spread of the Zika virus and other mosquito-borne diseases in Panama City February 4, 2016.
“There’s no immediate threat”, said Melanie Amato, spokesman for the Ohio Department of Health. The primary mosquito that carries the disease is not found in Pennsylvania, but one type of mosquito that can potentially carry the disease has been reported in the state.
The virus has been linked to a birth defect in which babies are born with abnormally small heads.
The CDC recommends pregnant women postpone travel to areas where there has been outbreak, including Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, Saint Martin, Suriname, U.S. Virgin Islands and Venezuela. Health officials said most people infected with the virus do not develop symptoms.
Although the re-emergence of the Zika virus which was first found in a rhesus monkey in 1952 is now being battled in selected countries, it is turning out to be a global problem.
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The Zika virus is spreading rapidly through Latin America. “In high-transmission settings, such as South America, Central America and the Caribbean, ophthalmologists should be aware of the risk of congenital ZIKV-associated ophthalmologic sequelae”, researchers said.
