Just last month, the World Health Organization said the virus is “spreading explosively” in the Americas.
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Butte County officials said people who have traveled to affected areas and have symptoms related to Zika to contact their medical provider or obstetrician, if pregnant.
The government believes that as many as 1.5 million Brazilians may have been infected by Zika so far. Pregnant women have been advised not to go for now due to growing evidence the mosquito-borne virus can cause microcephaly – babies born with abnormally small heads and affected brain development.
State health officials have confirmed Maryland’s first case of the Zika virus. The UNAH microbiology department will be in charge of research on the Zika virus epidemic in this Central American country, where a state of emergency was declared on February 1 due to the spread of the disease, which is transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito. It has not been scientifically confirmed that Zika can be linked to the brain defect. The current case count in New York State is 16 confirmed infections.
“We have raised awareness so people are more aware of the infection and we are likely to see more cases”. It said that until more is known, “all men and women living in or returning from an area where Zika is present – especially pregnant women and their partners – should be counseled on the potential risks of sexual transmission and ensure safe sexual practices”.
Although the virus has not been contracted locally, Armstrong urges Floridians to drain standing water weekly, no matter how little.
There is no vaccine for the virus and the CDC recommends that pregnant women not travel to infected countries.
That rebuttal came the same day star US soccer goalkeeper Hope Solo told Sports Illustrated that as of now, she wouldn’t be comfortable traveling to Rio because of concerns about how exposure to the virus might affect future pregnancies.
A woman in Hawaii who was infected with Zika virus recently gave birth to a child with microcephaly, a result in exposure to the virus.
The Centers for Disease Control is hosting a conference call and webinar with Florida hospital workers Thursday afternoon to discuss the spread of the Zika virus.
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“We’ve definitely gone back to the drawing board on that”, she said, referring to the island, which is on the Centres of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warning list.
