CDC director Dr. Thomas Frieden said scientists at the agency’s lab identified Zika virus in placental tissues. The baby was born in late 2015 with an undersized head and signs of damage to its central nervous system.
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Health officials said Friday they have confirmed nine cases of Zika virus among pregnant women in the US, and say they are investigating 10 more suspected cases.
A molecular model of the Zika virus.
The International Olympic Committee said earlier this month that Rio de Janiero will be a “safe environment” for the summer games.
Not included in that count are an additional 117 diagnosed cases of the virus in Puerto Rico that were reported to the CDC after they totaled the above numbers.
Mosquito-borne Zika outbreaks have erupted across most of Latin America and the Caribbean in the previous year.
A pregnant woman in Los Angeles County who traveled overseas has tested positive for the Zika virus, county officials said in a news release Friday. Two others made a decision to terminate their pregnancies.
Health Promotion Specialist with the Missoula City-County Health Department, Cindy Hotchkiss, added that the woman was not pregnant.
A further two had abortions after scans showed their foetuses were growing with undeveloped brains. Details were not provided for the second case.
“Absolutely devastating. I mean, to get the news that you are pregnant-you are so excited, you are expecting a new baby, a new addition to your family, and then to hear that you’ve miscarried would just be devastating”, Rupp said.
The new report said that, of the nine pregnant women confirmed to have been infected with Zika through travel, six were infected during their first trimester of pregnancy. “The U.S. obstetrics community needs to prepare accordingly”.
Those destinations are among the 30 places now on the CDC’s Zika travel alert. The woman from Missoula County is not pregnant. Zika virus, typically causing a mild illness in people who contract it, has been linked to much more serious conditions including microcephaly and Guillain-Barré Syndrome. Because of this, the CDC recommends that men who live in or travel to Zika infected areas should not have sex with a pregnant partner.
The advice also applies to the 2016 Paralympic Games, which are being held in Brazil in September. Current recommendations, based on CDC’s guidance for any area with active Zika transmission, include these:Consider not going to the Olympics.
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“If you travel most people don’t get infected, but some do”, he explained.
