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Two babies born in California with Zika-related severe birth defect

Severe microcephaly can involve brain damage.

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The 114 cases have been found in 22 counties in California, with the largest numbers in Los Angeles (24) and San Diego (23) counties.

The number of reported Zika cases among the ranks is tracked by the military weekly.

The mothers of the two babies were among 21 pregnant women in the state who contracted the virus while overseas in a country where the virus is spreading.

Health officials say West Nile has been prevalent in mosquitoes and you can never be too careful by wearing repellent. Two were the women who gave birth to the infants with defects. The affected area is now restricted to about one square mile in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties.

“In Miami, aggressive mosquito control measures don’t seem to be working as well as we’d like”, Frieden told reporters Monday.

San Bernardino County has had six people test positive for Zika. Nancy Tipps, clinical services director for the county health department, suggested signs or leaflets at the airport and at local ob-gyn offices.

The species of mosquito that carries the virus does not survive harsh winters in IL, but public health officials say they continue to trap and test mosquitos statewide just in case. Most people infected with the Zika virus do not become ill, and those who do become ill have symptoms that may include fever, rash, joint pain, and conjunctivitis.

Dr. Mark Rupp at Nebraska Medicine said mosquitoes in Nebraska and Iowa don’t carry Zika, so local transmission isn’t a concern.

Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), a rare disorder that can cause muscle weakness and paralysis for a few weeks to several months, is very likely triggered by zika in a small proportion of infections, much as it is after a variety of other infections.

The virus circulates about seven days.

“To date, we’ve had no positives for Zika virus”, she said.

According to the CDC, Zika virus has the potential to be spread through a mosquito bite, through unprotected sexual contact, through blood transfusion and an infected pregnant woman can pass Zika virus to her fetus during pregnancy.

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So far there have been no cases of the virus being transmitted within the state of California, or anywhere else in the U.S. except Florida, where it’s believed four cases were transmitted locally.

33 US military members have contracted Zika