The FDA says this will ensure that all blood is safe for those who may need a transfusion.
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Blood collection sites already test donations for HIV, hepatitis, West Nile virus and other blood-borne viruses.
The FDA notes that blood should be tested because four out of five Zika cases are asymptomatic, so people donating blood may not realize they have the virus.
The company said its second phase of deployment would be to prepare for blood donations in the southern United States.
However, the newborn’s blood tested positive for the Zika virus and at 67 days, health officials detected a “clear neurological decline”.
Puerto Rico has been screening all blood donations since March. “The system worked correctly”.
Zika was detected in Brazil a year ago and has since spread across the Americas.
Though scientists are still learning about the virus, they know that Zika is transmitted primarily by mosquitoes but can also be spread by sexual contact. The woman said she had recently had unprotected sex twice with a man who had recently returned from the Dominican Republic.
There have been no cases of Zika related to blood transfusions in the US, according to the CDC.
The FDA is updating its guidance after careful consideration of all available scientific evidence, consultation with other public health agencies, and taking into consideration the potential serious health consequences of Zika virus infection to pregnant women and children born to women exposed to Zika virus during pregnancy.
The FDA put out similar guidelines last February, but it only applied to blood banks in areas where the Zika virus was considered active. Since the identification of the first Zika cases in South Florida, FIU has been working with local authorities and frequently following updates from the Florida Health Department and CDC. “We do have leeway, and that’s good, because it’s definitely a situation were blood centers sort of have to get in line and wait for this test to be available to us”. The cost of adding Zika testing to the blood screening process is less than $US10 ($A13), according to officials at South Texas Blood and Tissue Center.
All other US states and territories will have three months to comply.
All other USA states and territories will have three months to comply. “MEDIC expects to begin testing well ahead of that timeline”.
Within 12 weeks, blood facilities in all states should be testing donations for Zika, the FDA says.
Bank managers hope to collect 1,000 units in the next week to meet local needs and provide blood to other banks that reach out for help. “Eighteen countries and territories have reported an increased incidence of Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) and/or laboratory confirmation of a Zika virus infection among GBS cases”, the group said.
The new online tool shows New Yorkers exactly where mosquito surveillance and control operations are happening across the city, as well the mosquito count and recent mosquito control events by neighborhood. US government researchers said they started their first clinical trial of a Zika vaccine. The PAHO said Zika can be transmitted through blood, but this is an infrequent transmission mechanism. Pinellas lawmakers on Friday asked the federal government for permission to deploy genetically altered mosquitoes to combat the virus’ spread should the need arise.
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“Not everybody needs to be screened”, Patricia Yepassis-Zembrou, communicable disease specialist for the Snohomish County Health District, said. “Just like an worldwide security threat would be the responsibility of the federal government”.
