The Department of Health has confirmed a fourth case of the Zika virus in CT.
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Brazilian health officials last October noticed a spike in cases of microcephaly in tandem with the Zika outbreak.
“Women who are pregnant should not travel to areas with Zika”. WFSB reported on Wednesday that the patient is a 17-year-old Danbury woman and that she was in Honduras.
Pregnant women and women planning to become pregnant are urged not travel to affected countries.
The medical school on April 28 announced its global maternal child and pediatric health program to address global-health issues women face during pregnancy and children face during early childhood, including the Zika virus.
She said anyone traveling to South and Central America along with the Caribbean need to be concerned.
In a previous study published in 2014, the team reported on the development of a paper-based test incorporating sensors that can detect ribonucleic acid (RNA) molecules, including those that are present in Ebola and other viruses.
The state lab is certified to test for Zika and confirmed the diagnosis.
“This patient was symptomatic”, said Dr. Matt Richardson, Denton County director of public health.
He said local residents traveling to affected countries, such as Brazil and Puerto Rico, should always use insect repellent and try to stay in air-conditioned rooms. The disease can also be sexually transmitted. “So if you can in a more timely fashion identify who’s sick … it seems reasonable that you’d be able to slow the rate of spread of the virus”, he added.
In addition, safe-sex practices are recommended.
Researchers at Harvard University say the new test can pick up the Zika virus in blood or saliva “at significantly lower concentrations than previously possible”.
“With hundreds of positive cases nationwide, I encourage residents to be vigilant”, the commissioner said.
Sadigh said the overwhelming majority of the samples the CDC gets come up negative. According to the CDC, 80 percent of people infected with the virus never even show symptoms, and when they do, those symptoms are typically mild, usually lasting only two to seven days.
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As Florida could become a hotbed for the virus, Scott said he’s headed to Washington in an effort to get everyone on board when it comes to stopping the virus dead in its tracks.
