The WHO said it also took into consideration new studies that have documented the transmission of Zika between sexual partners who had no symptoms of the disease. Only two showed an early infection 14 days later, and the virus was not detected on their heads or in their saliva.
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The WHO also recommended yesterday that people in Zika-hit areas be offered a full range of contraception options in order “to make an informed choice about whether and when to become pregnant”.
The U.N. health agency is changing its advice to travelers returning from areas facing a Zika virus outbreak, saying both men and women should now practice safe sex or abstinence for six months.
FOLLOWING confirmation of the latest and sixth Zika virus infection in the country, the Department of Health expects more cases to turn up. The CDC is now advising that pregnant women avoid traveling to these areas of Miami to reduce their risk of contracting Zika.
Many people infected with Zika won’t have symptoms or will only have mild ones – a fever, rash and muscle/joint aches.
That could help account for why Zika has spread so quickly, outpacing what might be expected if the virus were only carried by mosquitoes, Diamond said.
Zika can be found in the blood and it can stay in a man’s semen for months.
Now, a study published Tuesday showed bits of the virus could be found in the eyes and tears of mice.
One third of babies infected with Zika in utero have eye disease such as inflammation of the optic nerve, retinal damage or blindness, the researchers said.
Since the studies only found viral particles, not the infectious virus itself, the World Health Organization believes its “calculation for six months is conservative” and does not intend to extend the guidance past six months at this time.
“We need to consider whether people with Zika have infectious virus in their eyes and how long it actually persists”.
The main risk of catching the disease is from infected mosquitoes via bites.
Zika has spread across much of Latin America and the Caribbean.
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Lead author Dr Jonathan Miner said: “There could be a window of time when tears are highly infectious and people are coming in contact with it and able to spread it”. Neighboring Singapore has reported more than 200 cases of Zika. The tally we’ve been keeping at the website puts the total locally acquired cases at 275.
