At Scott’s direction, all Florida health departments offer pregnant women free Zika tests, but Tamayo complained that Scott had focused the state’s efforts on mosquito control, rather than addressing sexual transmission and preventing its spread.
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Miami Beach has certain characteristics that may make it more hard for public health officials to fight the virus’ spread, Frieden said today. Officials are looking into the possibility that the Pinellas County resident was infected with the virus in a neighboring county. The virus also increases the risk of developing Guillain-Barre syndrome, in which a person’s immune system attacks the nervous system, but chances of that remain very small. Last week, the Governor called on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for 5,000 Zika antibody tests.
Rick Falkenstein took action as soon as he heard there was a non-travel related case of the Zika virus in Pinellas County. In a study published Tuesday (August 23) in Radiology, researchers from the Federal University of São Paulo, Brazil, and their colleagues described 45 cases of Zika-related microcephaly in the country.
“At Georgia Southern, campus officials have been proactive in preparing for Zika and have already done an assessment of our campus to identify and remove areas that may collect standing water”, the notice stated.
Today the CDC said it was providing $6.8 million to national partners to aid in Zika and mosquito surveillance.
The study also included reports on 28 fetuses or newborns with brain anomalies whose mothers were suspected of having Zika during pregnancy. A House appropriations bill that would fund the Department of Health and Human Services for the upcoming fiscal year provides some funding to respond to public health emergencies.
To date, there are approximately 60 other travel-related Zika cases throughout Georgia and no evidence of local transmission in Georgia. The number of Zika cases there now total 10,690, with 1,035 of those being pregnant women. “That includes funds to purchase the other products they might want in a Zika prevention kit”, he said. The reason: better insect control as well as window screens and air conditioning that should help curtail any outbreaks.
Zika’s not spreading badly in Brazil now – it’s winter there and the Aedes mosquitoes that spread the virus as less active. An estimated 80 percent of people infected have no symptoms, making it hard for pregnant women to know whether they have been infected. “I believe that it’s also time for physicians in this area to start testing pregnant women in this area for the virus”.
As far as doctors knew, Zika clears up after a week or so.
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For more information on this and travel tips related to the Zika virus go to: Using Repellent Products to Protect against Mosquito-Borne Illnesses at EPA.org and Zika Virus: Plan for Travel at CDC.org.
