A baby born in Hawaii with a birth defect that affects head size had also been infected with Zika virus, state health officials said Saturday.
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Zika can be transmitted by a mosquito that has bitten an infected person.
As the New York Times reports, Brazilian doctors first linked microcephaly to the Zika virus late previous year.
Before 2015 Zika had only been seen in parts of Africa, southeast Asia and some Pacific islands.
Pregnant women in any stage of their pregnancy should avoid travel to Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Suriname, Venezuela, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
There is no specific treatment or vaccine now available.
Brazil’s Health Ministry says 3,530 babies have been born with microcephaly in the country since October.
The Zika virus’ local transmission – meaning mosquitoes in the area have been infected with the virus and are transmitting it to humans – has been detected in 14 countries and territories. There is no medicine or vaccine for it. Hospitalizations are rare, and deaths from Zika have not been reported.
Zika virus disease is caused by a virus transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes.
“However, additional studies are needed to further characterize this relationship”. Common symptoms are rash, joint pain, fever or conjunctivitis (red eyes.) Other symptoms include headache and muscle pain. “Zika is an imminent threat and it’s only a matter of time before we find a positive case”, Minister Dalley said.
Nonetheless, the USA health center urges all travelers to protect themselves against mosquito bites, by wearing long-sleeved shirts and long trousers, using insect repellents and sleeping in screened-in or air-conditioned rooms.
In the United case, several cases have been diagnosed in Puerto Rico among individuals bitten by mosquitoes who had not traveled.
Lab results from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed the presence of the virus in the newborn.
On Friday night, the CDC issued a travel advisory suggesting that pregnant women put off travel to affected regions, and issued a health alert to doctors to be on the lookout for the virus. Another CDC official, Dr. Lyle Petersen, said the virus seems to remain in the blood only about a week or two.
It will take months for scientists to fully understand how and why Zika might cause birth defects and to figure out why it had not been noticed before. Previous outbreaks were much smaller, and the problem may have occurred less often – and so was harder to recognize, he said.
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According to US officials pregnant women in any trimester should consider postponing travel to the areas where Zika virus transmission is ongoing.
