The CDC’s Frieden said Thursday he expects even more cases of Guillain-Barre syndrome in Puerto Rico because the Zika virus is infecting so much of the population there.
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That means those infected – be they South Floridians traveling elsewhere or visitors from countries with large Zika outbreaks coming here – unknowingly can spread the virus through unprotected sex or passing it to other mosquitoes by being bitten again.
Officials continue to struggle with controlling mosquitos in the Wynwood area of Miami, Frieden said.
“There is a lot of mosquitoes here in the estates, and from what I hear, they aren’t allowed to spray after 75, which I think is hurting everyone in the estates”, he said. “This is truly the cockroach of mosquitoes”.
In fact, three of the five patients were visiting Miami Beach when they contracted Zika, according to the Washington Post.
“Tourism is a driving force of our economy”, Scott said during a press conference.
Frieden said it is hard to determine if cases are locally acquired and whether cases are related.
“We are probably going to see more cases and we are probably peaking in terms of risk of transmission”, he said.
“I don’t want to minimize this concern in any shape or form”.
Worldwide health officials suspect a connection between pregnant woman catching the virus and a birth defect called microcephaly in newborns.
Zika has also been linked to a potentially fatal disorder known as Guillain-Barre syndrome, which can lead to nervous system problems such as weakness and paralysis.
Florida “will do everything we can to help pregnant women all across our state”. Still, officials said, the money being used to combat Zika “will be virtually exhausted by the end of the fiscal year” on September 30.
Florida’s Department of Health haven’t confirmed if Zika had spread to Miami Beach after the virus being confirmed in the Wynwood neighborhood.
During fetal development, the Zika virus affects the whole brain evenly.
People who live in or who have traveled to this part of South Beach since July 14 should be “aware of active Zika virus transmission”, the CDC said.
The CDC has an Emergency Response Team in Miami working with the Florida Department of Health to investigate local cases of Zika, Frieden noted. Philip said there were a number of investigations in progress, but that there have been no other suspected areas of local transmission, aside from the two identified areas.
But the discussions on Thursday morning between the county health department and Miami Beach officials, along with an email from City Manager Jimmy Morales, indicated that Zika was spreading in Miami Beach and likely had met CDC guidelines for confirmed transmission of the disease. While the Aedes aegypti travels no more than about 500 feet in its lifettime, people have the capacity to quickly carry the virus to the far ends of the globe.
At present, there is no vaccine for Zika virus.
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CDC director Tom Frieden is concerned that the battle to stop the spread of Zika might be hard in such a high-profile area that receives an abundance of tourists.
