Health officials are still struggling to figure out the Zika virus and how to deal with it. Officials are spilt on if they should advise women in the regions to avoid getting pregnant. More than 500 participated in the event to gain knowledge about symptoms, as well as the threat the Zika virus poses to pregnant women.
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USA health officials have concluded that Zika infections in pregnant women can cause microcephaly, a birth defect marked by small head size that can lead to severe developmental problems in babies. Upon questioning, the couple confirmed that they had sexual intercourse a few days after his travel, and scientists believe this was one of the first confirmed cases of Zika virus being spread through sexual transmission.
There was also an interactive exhibition that had information about mosquito breeding as the Zika virus can be transmitted via the Aedes mosquito.
“The risk of acquiring Zika from a mosquito bite in Wisconsin is really not a concern at this point”, said Karen McKeown, a health officer for the state Department of Health Services.
Fauci said he expected to see someone bitten by a mosquito here contract Zika but did not expect a large number of people to fall ill.
The mosquitoes most likely to carry Zika are not found in the Upper Midwest, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s estimate of their range. “We do not have local outbreaks”, he said.
“If you are a current pregnant woman, it recommended that you not travel to areas with active Zika transmission”, Minicuci told WSJM.
All 10 of Ohio’s cases were acquired outside the state during travel, and more than 340 positive cases nationally.
“It seems nearly inevitable that we will have a travel-related case”, McKeown said.
This story highlights a major shift in the thinking about the Zika virus. The work of the Inserm and confirm that this virus can be transmitted through sex.
But another species, Asian tiger mosquitoes or Aedes albopictus, is thought to live in parts of southern Wisconsin and southern Minnesota, along with all of Iowa and IL.
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Paskewitz and others plan to set up traps for Asian tiger mosquitoes in southern counties this summer. Traps for them, which could be set up by June, involve containers for laying eggs or other chemical lures, Paskewitz said.
