S. territories have been harder hit, with 503 cases having been reported (48 of whom were pregnant women).
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Though there’s no vaccination or cure for the Zika virus, medication can be used to treat its symptoms.
According to the CDC, Zika virus also has the potential to be spread through unprotected sexual contact, through blood transfusion and an infected pregnant woman can pass Zika virus to her fetus during pregnancy.
The carriers of the Zika virus, Aedes aegypti (at left) and Aedes albopictus.
Though five cases have been reported in West Virginia, Richardson said all of those were acquired through travel to countries where the Zika virus is prevalent.
“Don’t have any standing water, turn over all of those flowerpots that are empty, spray your backyard, use DEET when you go out, long sleeves, avoid mosquito bites”.
DPH officials were informed on Friday by the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene that a CT man tested positive for the virus after returning from a trip to a Zika-affected area in the Caribbean.
In particular, it recommends delaying travel for pregnant women or those who may become pregnant or male workers with pregnant partners or partners who may become pregnant.
The new rules, issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, urge employers of outdoor workers to inform them of the risks of exposure to Zika through mosquito bites and to train them on how to protect themselves.
Earlier this month, United States health officials confirmed, after long debates and months of uncertainty, that Zika causes microcephaly and other severe fetal brain defects. This same species of mosquitoes also spread diseases like dengue, chikungunya, and yellow fever viruses. Federal health officials have never suggested that all women in a region of the country avoid pregnancy. The virus is primarily spread by mosquitoes, and no mosquito-borne virus before had ever been known to cause birth defects.
The state’s first Zika case was confirmed in March and involved a woman in her 60’s who had traveled to a Zika-affected area. According to CBS News, no one knows how likely it is a baby will be harmed if a mother is infected.
The Department of Public Health reassures residents that there is no risk of Zika transmission to the public and that the virus is not circulating in San Francisco, the Bay Area or California.
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“I think we should take this as a wakeup call and start developing our surveillance systems so we can monitor these viruses a little more effectively”, he told the conference.
