The Zika virus is linked to brain deformities in babies and is causing concern among public health officials worldwide – the World Health Organization declared an global emergency on Monday, calling the virus a “public health threat”.
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The virus is typically spread through mosquito bites but health officials found one case in Texas where the disease was transmitted through sexual intercourse.
Meanwhile, health officials in Florida’s neighbouring state of Georgia confirmed its first Zika case on Wednesday. The Republic of Ireland’s Health and Safety Executive has said the cases are unrelated.
“We don’t believe this was spread through mosquito bites, but we do believe it was spread through a sexual contact”.
She said there are specific recommendations – including ultrasounds – for pregnant women who have made such a trip. Zika is an infection linked to thousands of birth defects in Brazil that is spreading through Latin America and the Caribbean by mosquitoes.
He added that condoms are the “best prevention method against any sexually transmitted infections”. “We do know that the virus stays in the blood for a certain while, we don’t even know the exact time”, he said.
A person in Texas has contracted the Zika virus through sexual contact, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The emergency order authorizes the state’s agriculture department to take action to combat the problem, such as spraying against mosquitoes in the areas.
Only about 1 in 5 people infected with Zika virus are symptomatic. The illness is usually mild with symptoms lasting several days to a week.
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The second case happened in 2008 when Dr Brian D Foy, a disease expert at Colorado State University, came down with the virus after travelling to Senegal and collecting mosquitoes for a study.
