The lab has been testing human for the Zika virus since April.
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While this is the first documented case of female to male sexual transmission, it’s not the first clue that the Zika virus might be hiding in the female genital tract.
The mother traveled from Latin America, where she was likely infected, and the baby acquired the infection in the womb, the Department of State Health Services said in a statement.
“All Virginia Zika virus infections have been associated with travel overseas, but we are ramping up efforts in preparation for locally transmitted cases where a mosquito bites an infected person and then bites someone else”, Governor McAuliffe said. The total number of confirmed, travel-related cases statewide rose to 293 on Wednesday, including 43 pregnant women. Neither the woman nor the child is infectious, meaning they pose no additional risk, the agency said.
According to the latest CDC statistics, there are only 14 known cases of sexually transmitted Zika in the United States.
“There is no vaccine for the virus, so health officials encourage individuals to avoid mosquito bites”. The Fort Bend County woman had her baby recently, however, and Legacy spokesman Kevin Nix said the baby was born without the defect. The county includes most of Houston. Both have recovered, a CDC official said.
While local transmission in Texas remains likely, according to DSHS, public health officials do not expect widespread transmission across large geographic areas of the state. The infant received a definitive positive result. The New York woman was not pregnant.
There have been 33 confirmed cases of Zika virus in Virginia so far. “Our hearts go out to the family”.
In April, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that Zika causes birth defects when pregnant women are infected.
“CDC is now updating recommendations for sexually active people in which the couple is not pregnant or concerned about pregnancy and for people who want to reduce personal risk of Zika infection through sex”. But local authorities in most of the state have limited or no mosquito surveillance. If they don’t have symptoms, they should take precautions for at least eight weeks. That means those infected contracted the virus while traveling outside of the state.
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Congress has remained stalemated on President Barack Obama’s $1.9 billion proposal to fight the virus. It also began a $2 million Zika awareness campaign.
