Heather Baker tells media outlets that she received a letter dated February 1 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirming that she has Zika virus.
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The ministry will also strengthen the surveillance system countrywide to raise the index of suspicion among health workers in the country, he added.
Testing for Zika virus will begin in Queensland’s vulnerable far north amid moves to prevent an outbreak of the disease.
The case in 2015 involves travel to South America. A rare case of sexually transmitted Zika virus was reported in Dallas on Tuesday by the local health department.
These are all individuals who traveled outside of the United States.
Health officials emphasize the disease is generally spread through mosquito bites.
Gov. Rick Scott declared a health emergency in four Florida counties, issuing an executive order requiring state health and agricultural officers to take any action necessary to protect public health and reduce populations of the insects that can spread the Zika virus. “The Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) estimates there will be 4 million additional cases of infection from the Zika virus in the Americas region by the end of 2016”.
Marcelo Addas Carvalho, director of the Blood Center at the Sao Paulo state University of Campinas, said on Thursday genetic testing confirmed that a man who received a blood transfusion using blood from a donor with Zika in March previous year became infected with the virus, although the patient did not develop symptoms.
“However, it may be harmful for pregnancies, as it’s been potentially linked to birth defects, specifically, abnormally small heads [microcephaly]”. In early February, the World Health Organization called the rapid spread of the virus a global health emergency. New says this mosquito is usually not found this far North. You’re most likely to find them along our coast, or in New Orleans.
“The infection often occurs without symptoms but it can cause a mild illness which can include fever, headache, rash, joint and muscle pain, and conjunctivitis”.
Brazil, which is now the worst hit by the Zika virus, has reported that it is investigating 3,670 possible cases of microcephaly in babies that are related to the virus. He says, “We’re in constant contact with the health department”.
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Canadian blood agencies on Wednesday announced that anyone who had travelled to a Zika-risk area would be ineligible to give blood for three weeks upon their return.
