Puerto Rico has reported its first case of brain defect microcephaly amid the ongoing Zika virus outbreak.
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The virus burst onto the global spotlight earlier this year due to its explosive growth in the Americas, particularly in Brazil where mothers infected with Zika have given birth to babies with abnormally small heads and underdeveloped brains.
U.S. health officials have concluded that Zika infections in pregnant women can cause microcephaly.
She said the woman who donated her fetus did not test positive for Zika or present symptoms.
So far, Puerto Rico has recorded Zika infection in 18 pregnant women, as well as 27 cases of Zika infection where the person was sick enough to require hospitalization.
“The March of Dimes and a coalition of dozens of prominent health-related organizations have called upon the U.S. Congress to provide emergency funding immediately to combat Zika virus”.
Ana Rius told a news conference in San Juan the case was confirmed, but the baby with the virus was not born.
The Zika virus is spread by the Aedes mosquito, which also transmits dengue. One resident, a 3-month pregnant woman, told the channel: “I’m also four months pregnant so I’m quite anxious about this, but there are only so many precautions I can take”. Meanwhile, scientists in the USA, who likened Zika outbreak to the Ebola crisis, said it could be years before a vaccine is publicly available.
Rius said people were unnecessarily anxious about the spread of Zika in Puerto Rico, which depends heavily on tourist dollars.
The virus has created a major health scare around the world. Once infected with Zika, only about 20% of people ever show symptoms, which most commonly include fever, rash, joint pain, and red eyes.
The virus has most recently been prevalent in South and Central America, but had caused outbreaks in parts of Africa, Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands before 2015, according to the CDC.
The senators say the waiver would allow state and local agencies to spray for mosquitoes year-round.
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“Here we are, three months after the administration has put forth our proposal that he comes forward with a much smaller one that is inconsistent with the recommendations of our public health professionals”, said press secretary Josh Earnest.
