“For local transmission of Zika virus to be possible, mosquitoes must first pick up the virus from an infected person to be able to spread it to others”, said State Epidemiologist Dr. Kristy Bradley.
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Its website says it plans to test a portion of its collected blood for the Zika virus and to allow hospitals to have access to Zika-screened blood products from unaffected areas to use with their patients at high risk of Zika complications, such as pregnant women.
The FDA also recommended that neighboring counties implement the same precautions “to help maintain the safety of the blood supply as soon as possible”.
The group originally planned to start the testing August 1, but they chose to move ahead of schedule after a federal order.
Florida Zika case could signal first infected mosquitos in U.S.
Health officials are now investigating four Zika virus cases in Florida that may not be travel-related.
CDC officials have said repeatedly they expect to see cases of local transmission of the Zika virus this summer in warm, humid southern states such as Florida, Louisiana and Texas. More than 430 pregnant women in the continental US have been diagnosed with Zika, along with 422 in the territories.
The CDC recommends that if you have traveled to a country with local transmission of Zika you should abstain from unprotected sex.
The virus’ symptoms are usually mild, but Zika has been identified as a cause of congenital microcephaly and other birth defects.
Door-to-door outreach and sample collection are ongoing in all cases, according to health officials.
The new cases are in Miami-Dade and Broward counties, the same areas where health officials began investigating two similar cases last week.
Public health departments don’t have the money or staff to test everyone for Zika, so many cases are never detected, Hotez said.
For more information on the Zika virus contact the local health department at 740-380-3030.
“Instead of telling women in these countries to not get pregnant, what if we take advantage of the fact that the virus can be avoided if pregnancy is aligned with a time of year when there are fewer mosquitoes?” said study author Micaela Martinez.
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The Zika virus is spread to people through mosquito bites. They’re also advising pregnant women to use condoms for the duration of their pregnancies in order to prevent Zika infections. The possibility of residents who have Zika but don’t know it is heightened by the fact that 80 percent of those who have Zika display no symptoms.
