Kipchoge Keino said: “We are not going to risk taking Kenyans there if this Zika virus reaches epidemic levels”.
Advertisement
Maryland health officials announced Thursday the state’s first confirmed case of the Zika virus.
“Yolo County residents traveling to Central or South America or the Caribbean, where Zika is present, should take precautions against mosquitoes”, said Yolo County Health Officer Dr. Ron Chapman in the news release.
The majority of people infected with Zika virus have no symptoms. The disease starts with a mosquito bite and normally causes little more than a fever and rash.So far, 26 countries have confirmed the case of Zika.
Infected mosquitoes remain the primary source of Zika virus transmission while other modes of transmission like sexual contact are being investigated. Local health organizations, however, reportedly said that the actual number could likely be much higher. The medical community suspects that Zika can lead to devastating birth defects, most notably microcephaly, in which newborns have abnormally small heads and underdeveloped brains. The Zika virus is spread through mosquito bites from Aedes aegypti and the CDC is investigating whether it is also spread by Aedes albopictus.
Despite a recent spike in Zika cases, Hennessy has said there is “no risk” to the general public, as Zika is not able to be transferred from person to person. In most cases, the virus does not require hospitalization, but has been linked to birth defects. According to the CDC, severe complications from the virus are rare.
Discovered in Uganda in 1947, the current outbreak of Zika virus in Brazil began in early 2015 and has spread to over 20 other countries in the Americas, including Mexico and Puerto Rico.
Dr. Lyle Peterson with the CDC said the mosquito known to transmit the virus is found in the southern USA, including Florida, where 100 million tourists visited past year.
Advertisement
At the epicenter of the outbreak, Brazilian health officials are looking to join forces with American researchers to develop a vaccine for the virus, Reuters reports.
