She also stated that she didn’t know if a man has received warning about the potential for Zika to spread through sex but she was unaware if his partner was informed about the same.
Advertisement
Most people infected with Zika virus will not develop symptoms.
Werker added that women who are pregnant or plan to become pregnant are advised not to travel to areas where the Zika virus is present.
Currently, there is no vaccine to prevent infection and no specific antiviral treatment is available for Zika infection.
Officials at OCH Regional Medical Center offered suggestions on lowering the possibility of getting infected and travel tips to tropical regions where the virus is most common. Pregnant women should avoid sexual contact – or only have protected sex using a condom – with any male who has recently returned from a country with Zika virus.
The agency also recommends pregnant women avoid travel to Zika-infected areas.
Both dengue fever and Zika are spread when a sick person gets bit by a mosquito, which later bites another person. All of those who tested positive got the virus overseas, and there has been no local transmission of Zika in Hawaii.
The US mainland has seen 273 confirmed Zika cases, 19 of which acquired through sexual contact, the CDC said.
Test results were reported to DPH by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which has been tracking cases across the United States.
Men who have traveled to areas with active Zika virus transmission and their pregnant sex partners should use condoms or abstain from sex during pregnancy.
Concern had been raised about a suspected link between the virus and two neurological disorders: microcephaly, which is associated with unusually small heads and, often, brain damage in infants; and, Guillain-Barré syndrome, in which the immune system attacks part of the nervous system.
The Mississippi State Department of Health made the announcement about those cases this week, and it has some concerned about the risk of transmission.
“These recommendations are our best attempt to try to provide reasonable time frames based on how long the virus persists in the blood and how long the virus persists in semen”, Jamieson said.
Advertisement
With contributions by KPBS News reporter Erik Anderson.
