The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said today it is looking into the suspected cases.
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Earlier this month, a case was confirmed in Texas, spurring the CDC to release guidelines on preventing sexual transmission of the virus.
Men with a pregnant sex partner who have traveled or live in areas where the virus is being locally transmitted should consistently and correctly use condoms or abstain from sex during the pregnancy. “How much of that is Zika virus is really one of the important goals of this study”, said Erin Staples, a Colorado-based epidemiologist who heads the CDC contingent in Paraiba state.
Brazil considered most of the cases of babies born with abnormally small heads to be related to Zika, though the link between the virus and the birth defects has not been scientifically established.
The CDC said there is no evidence that women can pass along the Zika virus to their sex partners, although that is still being researched.
Zika virus is mainly spread by mosquito bites.
Zika virus illness is usually mild.
Thousands of malformed babies have been born in Brazil in areas hit by the Zika virus, which is transmitted by mosquitoes. The outbreak prompted the World Health Organization to declare a public health emergency and the CDC to issue travel alerts for pregnant women. An estimated 4 out of 5 people infected never have symptoms; when symptoms occur they may last from several days to one week. The CDC also issued guidance on how to care for pregnant women during a Zika outbreak, safe sex, and when to get tested for Zika. As the survey indicates, clear communication of the best science remains key to avoid misinformation and hysteria when it comes to Zika and any similar situations in the future.
Traveled to areas during the past four weeks where there’s active transmission of Zika virus.
Efforts to control the spread of the virus focus on eliminating mosquito breeding sites and taking precautions against mosquito bites such as using insect repellent and mosquito nets. “Research is now underway to answer this question as soon as possible”.
Tests have found evidence of Zika in saliva and urine as well. This includes any history of Zika-like infection.
With no cure or vaccine available for Zika, which has spread to more than 30 countries, mostly in the Americas, the only way to contain the virus is to reduce the mosquito population. “But pregnant women, we believe, are at a very substantial risk of complications”.
Zika is actively spreading in more than two dozen Latin American and Caribbean countries.
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It also added three locations – Trinidad, Tobago and the Marshall Islands – to its list of travel notices in relation to the virus.
