The Kentucky Department for Public Health (DPH) is reporting that a resident has tested positive for Zika virus disease after traveling in a Central American country where the virus is circulating. For women living in or traveling to countries where Zika virus has taken hold, the most pressing question has been: If I get pregnant, and I get Zika, what are the chances that my baby will be born with microcephaly? “While all 62 cases of Zika in Florida are travel related, it is important we take proactive measures to prevent the spread of the Zika virus”.
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Common symptoms of Zika are fever, rash, joint pain, and conjunctivitis (red eyes), according to the county’s website, which has a special section dedicated to informing residents about the virus.
According to a report from the Florida Health Bureau, 59 of the 60 patients with confirmed Zika virus acquired the virus overseas. A recent New England Journal of Medicine analysis of 88 pregnant women infected with Zika virus, for example, found 29% had fetal abnormalities revealed by ultrasound.
“Our analysis strongly supports the hypothesis that Zika virus infection during the first trimester of pregnancy is associated with an increased risk of microcephaly”, said Simon Cauchemez, an infectious disease mathematical modeling expert at France’s Institute Pasteur who co-led the study.
Pregnant women are believed to have a high risk for complications in the development of their child during the active course of the infection.
The Ohio Department of Health says Zika virus is primarily transmitted through the bite of an infected mosquito. So far, no transmission of the disease by mosquitos has been identified in the continental U.S. “Zika alone really looks like the problem in these birth defects”, Hotez said.
Much remains unknown about the virus and whether it is the main factor behind microcephaly.
At present, the DOH has a total of 5,000 testing kits, or the Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) that can be used for testing suspected Zika cases.
“The caveat to that is if a woman travels to a Zika affected area with her partner, it’s not clear how long the Zika virus persists in the semen, and so it seems to persist up to 10 weeks”, says Dr. Antony.
World Health Organization (WHO) data indicate that local Zika transmission has been documented in 55 countries and territories from January 2007 to March 3 this year.
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In addition to congenital microcephaly, Zika virus may cause miscarriages, and other adverse fetal outcomes.
