It’s a change made because doctors in Brazil, the center of one of the worst outbreaks, are investigating a case where the virus may have spread through a transfusion.
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The WHO, however, says transmission will probably spread to all the countries and territories in the Americas hosting the mosquito that transmits the virus – known as the Aedes mosquito – including the USA mainland.
According to the CDC, only 1 in 5 people infected with the virus, actually show symptoms, most of which are mild.
The CDC said the link between Zika virus and severe birth defects is growing stronger by the day.
Urbina-Medina says that, with the exception of a single government hospital in Caracas, Venezuela even lacks the supplies to test for Zika and give definitive diagnoses.
Friday’s announcement coincided with the start of Carnival, a five-day bacchanalia that sees millions of people take part in alcohol-fueled parties where kissing as many people as possible is a top pastime.
Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Jamaica and the United States territory of Puerto Rico have all warned women not to get pregnant.
“We’re still learning more about (the virus in) saliva and how it works in the body”, Frieden said.
The World Health Organisation “strongly suspects” there is a causal relationship between the virus and thousands of cases of microcephaly in South America – a devastating condition in which a baby is born with an abnormally small head and brain.
The ministry says the number of cases diagnosed so far are within expectations and do not pose a risk for the virus to be spread in Spain.
Florida’s history of fighting off mosquito-borne outbreaks puts the state in perhaps better position than most when it comes to the Zika virus.
Huniades Urbina-Medina, president of the Venezuelan Pediatric Society, agreed, warning that he feared Venezuela could be on the brink of a more concentrated wave of microcephalic births than Brazil has witnessed. He said local blood clinics should begin taking steps to screen out travelers to the Zika outbreak region immediately, “today”. And as temperatures and mosquito populations rise, municipalities will have to examine their mosquito abatement policies, he added.
Why did some nations advise women to postpone pregnancy? The panel also urged additional research into “clusters” of microcephaly and other disorders linked to Zika.
Scientists are racing to try to create a vaccine for Zika, but it could be years until that is available to the public.
The statement also confirms that there is a Games-time plan in place to minimise the impact of the virus and offers current global advice for people visiting areas with Zika.
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What other complications are associated with Zika?
