Zika is a mosquito-borne virus that only causes mild, flu-like symptoms in most people.
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Officials with the Wisconsin Department of Health Services said Wednesday, August 10th there are NO locally transmitted cases of Zika virus in Wisconsin – but there is a plan in place as it relates to prevent and response here in the Badger State.
A Coachella Valley woman has tested positive for the Zika virus, which health officials said she contracted while traveling to Guatemala.
The Centers for Disease Control recommends that women who are pregnant or thinking of becoming pregnant postpone travel to Zika affected areas.
Women who aren’t pregnant should still take precautions and use condoms, Rios said, especially if their partners have traveled outside the country and experienced symptoms. Unfortunately however, the Zika vius is now making its way to other parts of the world and according to recent reports has found its way to Florida where a pregnant woman suffering as a result of contracting the life-threatening virus alerted officials of its existence there.
There is no vaccine available for the virus so far, but researchers are working to develop one that could be ready for public distribution in 2017. At least 15 others have been born with similar defects linked to the Zika virus.
Zika symptoms typically begin within two to seven days after a person is infected.
There is only one neighborhood in Miami where Zika is being spread by mosquitoes in the U.S.
Georgia health officials said they have found a handful of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes in a single trap in the Columbus area.
It’s feared that the impact of the Zika virus in Florida is even being felt in local real estate markets, affecting home values in some parts of the state.
Learn more about the CDC recommendation here. Mosquitoes that spread Zika are aggressive daytime biters. “And when you present it in the context of Zika or any prenatal condition, it’s a difficult question and a hard one”, Rubio told POLITICO on August 6.
In addition to mosquitoes, the Zika virus can be transmitted through sex. The North Carolina Division of Public Health is using the funds to hire entomology and laboratory experts, and provide aid to counties across the state.
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While it is unlikely for a woman infected with Zika to pass the virus onto her unborn child during labor and delivery, the Zika virus can cross the placenta and infect a fetus during any stage in pregnancy. So it’s no surprise that South Florida is where a US outbreak occurred.
