Pregnant women reporting clinical illness consistent with Zika virus disease during or within 2 weeks of travel should be tested for Zika virus infection.
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A Yolo County person has tested positive for Zika virus after recently returning from worldwide travel, adding to worries about the virus’ spread from Latin America into parts of California and the United States.
The news, first reported by USA Today, comes just days after US women’s soccer goalkeeper Hope Solo, among the most high-profile American Olympians, said she would choose not to go to Brazil if the Olympics were being held now.
“These include the correct and consistent use of condoms, one of the most effective methods of protection against all sexually transmitted infections”, the World Health Organization said. Babies affected by the defect have abnormally small heads and underdeveloped brains.
The STAT website first reported Wednesday that at least three US women had suffered miscarriages, based on information from the CDC’s chief pathologist. There is now no vaccine to prevent Zika or medicine to treat it.
The miscarriages reinforce the theory that an expecting mother can pass the virus to her fetus.
“The AFP takes the safety and continued wellbeing of its members very seriously and routine medical testing for viruses such as Malaria, Dengue Fever and Zika has been available for a number of years”, the spokeswoman said.
The Zika virus is mainly transmitted through mosquito bites, and the mosquito linked to the outbreaks does not exist in this region.
Some scientists have warned the virus could cause the paralyzing condition Guillain-Barre Syndrome in adults, though the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says they cannot confirm the link.
Earlier this week another pregnant woman became the third confirmed case in Queensland in 2016. The AFP declined to comment on how many officers were diagnosed with the mosquito-borne illness.
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But Haft also said that “this is not cause for alarm or panic”.
