“There are many reasons to believe that we will not see widespread Zika transmission in the United States the way that other parts of the world have experienced it”, said Dr. Nate Smith, ADH Director and State Health Officer.
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Zika is primarily transmitted by Aedes aegypti mosquito bites, though spread of the virus also has been reported through blood transfusions.
The World Health Organization on Tuesday advised pregnant women not to travel to areas with active Zika virus and said sexual transmission is “relatively common”.
While a vaccine to treat the virus is now unavailable, the health ministry previously tried to allay fears here about the virus – which has been linked to microcephaly, a condition marked by babies being born with abnormally small heads that can result in developmental problems – spreading, following the previous confirmed case last month.
Chan described the latest research on Zika as “alarming”, including growing evidence that the virus triggers the severe neurological disorder Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS), which can cause paralysis or death in extreme cases.
The state’s announcement comes one day after Northwell Health announced the opening of its Zika-in-Pregnancy program on its Manhasset campus and about a month after officials at Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow said the facility is offering Zika-specific services.
The state already offers testing to pregnant women who traveled during pregnancy to an area where Zika is circulating, and to non-pregnant women, men or children who developed symptoms of Zika within four weeks of travel to an area with active Zika transmission. “It highlights the existence of neurological complications in the acute phase of the infection”, said the researchers.
Humbaugh said most Kentuckians are not at risk for Zika virus infection unless they’ve traveled recently to affected areas, including South America, the Caribbean and Central America. “We got mosquitoes the whole year, but that kind of mosquito, it’s concerning”, said café manager Edwin Martinez.
The virus, borne by mosquitoes, causes mild flu-like symptoms and rashes in some infected people and there is no known cure. “We can now conclude that Zika virus is neurotropic, preferentially affecting tissues in the brain and brain stem of the developing fetus”, the Director-General stated.
Frieden expressed concern over the number of Puerto Rican women who do not want to get pregnant but are not using birth control.
Worse, Zika appears to hijack these cells, using them to churn out new copies of the virus and spread more rapidly, the researchers reported. Because most people with Zika will not have symptoms, it is important for travelers to areas where Zika is present to avoid mosquitoes while overseas and for the first 10 days after they return home whether they have symptoms of illness or not.
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“This case strengths the hypothesis regarding the neurotropic nature of the Zika virus”. The money would help prevent, treat and diagnose the Zika virus, which is expected to spread in the USA this spring.
