The virus can cause a birth defect called microcephaly, making Zika especially risky to pregnant women.
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Any infant exposed to the Zika virus in utero should have their hearing tested after birth, no matter how normal they may appear, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Tuesday.
Scientists are still in the early stages of understanding the full breadth of the health problems that are caused by Zika. Brazil has been the hardest hit, with thousands of infants born with this defect, known as microcephaly.
Experts have been warning that the kind of brain damage wreaked by the Zika virus could result in vision and hearing loss. For those who answer yes, doctors may then inquire about Zika-related symptoms.
There have been almost 700 confirmed Zika cases in the United States.
Apart from Zika, several other viral infections during pregnancy can also cause hearing loss among newborns, including rubella and cytomegalovirus. The most severe effect is on foetuses, when the virus is transmitted from a pregnant mother. Pregnant travelers returning from Puerto Rico, or who have had possible sexual exposure, should be offered testing for Zika virus infection.
Regional health experts said the Zika virus is likely to be significantly under-reported across tropical Southeast Asia as local health authorities fail to conduct adequate screening.
Traveled to areas with active transmission of Zika virus during the past four weeks.
Around the region, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines have “possible endemic transmission or evidence of local mosquito-borne Zika infections in 2016”, the World Health Organization said.
Also since last week, the territory had two new cases found in pregnant women, with 14 confirmed and five presumptive.
“This is an important first step, but there are many more to come before we are able to say which drug is going to be effective against Zika virus infection”, Rathore said.
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Zika’s effects on adults are relatively mild, with almost 80 percent of infected adults reportedly having no symptoms. Officials on the island have reported more than 14,000 cases, including 1,244 among pregnant women. Symptoms include fever, rash, joint pain, red eyes, muscle pain and headache.
