26, 2015, the USA government said Zika infections have been confirmed in nine pregnant women in the United States.
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As the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro draw closer, the Zika virus has remained a concern for athletes and fans alike. Brazil and French Polynesia are the only countries so far to report increases in microcephaly.
State health officials say two more Iowa travelers have become ill with the Zika virus.
There has been an explosion of Zika infections in South and Central America, Mexico and the Caribbean since last May.
Microcephaly is a congenital condition that causes abnormally small heads and hampers brain development.
Ten other reports of pregnant women with Zika-like symptoms are being investigated, the CDC said. It is no doubt hard to learn that you’re carrying a child that has a birth defect, especially a severe one.
– Two had miscarriages, but it’s unknown if the Zika infection was the cause. The CDC did not release details on where the baby was born. Two others had miscarriages, though officials said they could not say what role Zika played. An amniocentesis test showed virus in the amniotic fluid, which indicates the fetus was infected.
The International Olympics Committee (IOC) has tried to quell fears among athletes and has distributed guidance using information from the World Health Organization. At the top of that list is determining whether – and how – the virus is linked to birth defects such as microcephaly, as well as to cases of a rare autoimmune disorder known as Guillain-Barré syndrome.
The CDC has also warned pregnant women to refrain from unprotected sex with a partner who has traveled to a Zika-affected region.
“This was a woman who had never travelled”.
Chan said part of the challenge in fighting the mosquito-borne virus was the fact that it is so “mysterious”.
Six of the women reported their symptoms during the first trimester of their pregnancy.
Since the Zika virus can be spread by both the mosquito bite and sexual contact, you should abstain from sexual contact or use condoms with travelers from Zika affected areas. No instances of direct transmission via mosquito have yet taken place in the United States.
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In this February 24, 2016 photo, workers from the Puerto Rico Health Department and CDC review Zika related data collected by the island’s health dept and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in San Juan, Puerto… A growing number of global athletes in recent weeks have said they are concerned about Zika, though few have said it would deter them from competing.
