Meanwhile, U.S. health officials on Friday said men who have been to a Zika outbreak region should use condoms if they have sex with a pregnant woman – for the entire duration of the pregnancy.
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention anticipates the numbers of cases of the virus in US travelers to increase, which could create a spread of the disease, however it is unlikely to become widespread on the USA mainland. The CDC said that couples may consider using condoms or abstaining from sex if a male partner lives in or has traveled to a place where Zika virus is spreading.
The CDC did, however, issue new guidelines for how pregnant women should protect themselves from getting infected, following a report out of Dallas this week that Zika had been spread through sexual contact in one case. The hospital also is establishing protocols to diagnose patients whose symptoms match the virus and is taking steps to identify and monitor pregnant women who may have been exposed.
Zika virus disease is mainly spread by mosquitoes. But in Brazil, health officials are investigating a possible connection between the virus and babies born with brain defects and abnormally small heads. The Zika virus has also been found in Miami-Dade, Broward, Hillsborough, Lee and Santa Rosa counties.
Paulo Gadelha, president of Fiocruz, said the development was of greatest concern to pregnant women, given the strongly suspected link with microcephaly, which caused the World Health Organisation (WHO) to declare a public health emergency of worldwide concern.
People usually don’t get sick enough to go to the hospital, and they very rarely die of Zika. One cases from this year involved a women who is pregnant.
Still, most global experts are cautious about whether Zika can trigger Guillain-Barre, a rare syndrome that causes paralysis, because other infections and conditions can lead to the illness.
Tom Frieden, director of the CDC, told reporters Friday that the guidelines are focused on preventing transmission to pregnant women due to the risky birth defects associated with the virus. The agency has not issued guidance regarding kissing, Frieden said.
Going back to 2013, there have only been six confirmed cases in California, and they were all in people who contracted the virus while traveling overseas.
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The UN on Friday (Feb 5) urged countries hit by the Zika virus to give women access to contraception and abortion, as health officials warned that sex or even kissing could potentially spread the disease. Researchers have identified evidence of Zika infection in 17 of these cases, either in the baby or in the mother, but have not confirmed that Zika can cause microcephaly.
