The Health Ministry says it has ramped up its fight against the zika virus in three communities following the confirmation of three new cases of the virus in Jamaica.
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Cuba’s first case of local transmission of Zika virus was confirmed Tuesday. Of the statewide cases, seven were still exhibiting symptoms as of today, the department said, adding that symptoms typically last between seven and 10 days. For this reason, many people might not realize they have been infected.
As of Friday, the CDC had reported 258 Zika infections in 34 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, all contracted outside the U.S. Of the U.S. cases, 18 are in pregnant women and 6 were sexually transmitted.
That US national public health institute also warned that sexual transmission of the Zika virus from a male partner was also possible and therefore encouraged travellers either to use condoms or abstain from sex.
In a report released today the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Review, researchers found that at least 116 US residents have laboratory-confirmed Zika infections, based on CDC testing.
With the latest approach, a single test will be needed to determine if a person is infected with the Zika virus.
The Zika virus has now spread to Cuba, according to The Washington Post, and the Centers for Disease Control has placed a travel advisory on the country. “They should also know about the potential serious threat to pregnant women”, said Dr. Tracy Murphy, state epidemiologist and Public Health Sciences Section administrator with WDH. The virus itself is very mild but it can be spread from a woman to her fetus and cause a birth defect called microcephaly, she said.
DOH Deputy Secretary Lynn Gallagher said, “We have been working closely with CDC to prepare for Zika cases in New Mexico”.
The virus can cause Microcephaly in infants, which is a potentially life-threatening birth defect that results in the baby having a smaller head than expected.
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According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the Zika virus outbreak is likely to spread throughout almost all the Americas. Kane County provides up to date information at www.kanehealth.com as well as facts about Zika.
