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Does The Olympics In Rio Put The World In Danger Of Zika?

“Given the current level of global concern, I have chose to ask members of the Zika Emergency Committee to examine the risks of holding the Olympic Summer Games as now scheduled, ” Chan wrote.

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One co-author told the Press Association if this year’s Games went ahead it risked becoming “the Olympics of brain damage”.

World Health Organization has already advised pregnant women not to go to Rio and says other travellers should avoid poor and overcrowded parts of the city.

However, the risks don’t seem to bother the defending gold medalist.

Around 1,500 babies are thought to have been affected by the outbreak, which has caused leading U.S. cyclist Tejay van Garderen to pull out due to the perceived health risk to his pregnant wife. Rodriguez told ESPN.com on Tuesday he wouldn’t blame athletes for skipping the Olympics, especially if they might have more children.

“It’s hard to say right now”, Day said on whether he will in fact be in Rio. If we were just going to start trying, I’d say we could start trying six months after the Olympics.

Rory McIlroy is set to compete at the Olympics after taking medical advice over the Zika virus which has spread through Brazil. It will be winter in Brazil when the Olympics begin, so the mosquitoes that carry the virus will be less abundant.

The Public Health Department is investigating a case of Zika virus in a patient who had visited Cayman and tested positive on returning home.

Van Garderen took part in the London 2012 Olympic Games and was set to land on of the two spots for the USA team in the road race at the Rio Games.

They also suggested using insect repellents such as DEET, picaridin or oil of lemon eucalyptus to avoid zika and other diseases transmitted by mosquitoes.

So Vespignani is working on a computer model for the US government to predict how Zika will spread. “It is unethical to run the risk, just for Games that could proceed anyway, if postponed and/or moved”.

Zika virus cases have been reported in ten countries which includes France, Germany, Italy, Portugual and New Zealand.

For women who are pregnant or hoping to become pregnant, the recommendation is to stay away from areas with Zika outbreaks.

Although this is the first local travel-related Zika virus case, there are now 13 travel-related cases statewide, according to the Ohio Department of Health.

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World Health Organization said Saturday the emergency committee meeting had already been planned for June, since it was required to do so within about three months of its last gathering, on March 8.

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