State health officials say the first case of the Zika virus infection has been reported in North Carolina in a person who had traveled to a country where an outbreak of the virus is ongoing.
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The woman is said to be in the 61 to 80-year-old range, but other information about her is being withheld. “So we’re doing a little bit extra, and mostly that’s getting to the public the message that they can make a difference”, said Chris Richmond, of Brevard County Mosquito Control.
Locally transmitted cases of Zika by mosquitoes have not been identified in the United States, although the potential for local transmission exists, as Aedes mosquitoes are present in many states.
Zika has caused worldwide alarm, with the World Health Organisation declaring it a global public health emergency earlier this month.
Esther Ellis, the territory’s epidemiologist, said Friday afternoon that the number of blood tests being processed for possible Zika exposure has increased, but she said the Health Department will focus on updating the numbers once a week.
The new, updated advisory pertains to babies who are born with a normal head circumference that does not indicate microcephaly, the devastating birth defect that’s been strongly linked with maternal Zika infection.
A doctor examines a larva of the Aedes aegypti mosquito, the carrier of Zika virus, in a laboratory of the Ministry of Health, in San Jose, Costa Rica, on January 29, 2016. Symptoms, which can last between several days to a week, also include headache, muscle pain, vomiting and pain behind the eyes.
Hillsborough County has had three confirmed cases so far.
Aylward also pointed to the “probability” that the Zika virus will have “gone through” a large slice of the country’s population by then, so many Brazilians might have developed an immunity to the disease by the time of the Aug.5-21 games.
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Brazil said it has confirmed more than 500 cases of microcephaly, mostly in the Northeast, and considers majority to be related to Zika infections in mothers. “And that’s not just for Zika virus, but also from some other viruses that mosquitoes can carry”. Most people recover from it, but it can cause paralysis or death. Some health agencies, including the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, have issued guidance for pregnant women to avoid traveling to areas experiencing Zika outbreaks and for men returning from affected countries to wear condoms or abstain from sex with pregnant women.
