All got the virus overseas. The CDC did not release details on where the baby was born.
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US health authorities Friday described the cases of nine pregnant women who contracted the Zika virus while traveling, two of whom chose abortion and one who gave birth to a baby with microcephaly.
New figures from Brazil’s Health Ministry show that the Zika virus outbreak has not caused as many confirmed cases of a rare brain defect as first feared. Cases of microcephaly, which shrinks the heads and brains of children, have skyrocketed in places with Zika, but epidemiologists have been unable to prove that infections in mothers are directly causing the defects. The mosquito is a vector for the proliferation of the Zika virus now spreading throughout Latin America.
The researchers describe a 20-year-old Brazilian woman who showed no signs of Zika infection or other related viruses, such as dengue and or chikungunya.
As of February 17, two of the women had early miscarriages, two had elective terminations, two were still pregnant: one 18 weeks, the other 34 weeks – both are continuing without any known complications – and there have been three births.
Studies to determine whether Zika causes microcephaly are a priority. Details were not provided for the second case.
The remaining two women in the United States are still pregnant, and according to fetal tests, are carrying healthy babies.
Two of the nine women are still pregnant. She is believed to have been infected while traveling to Brazil.
Saskatchewan health officials confirm a resident has the Zika virus, but couldn’t say what country the traveller was in or the person’s gender.
Those destinations are among the 30 places now on the CDC’s Zika travel alert. It recommends that pregnant women postpone trips to those areas.
Many health experts are convinced that the link between Zika virus and birth defects is a reality but there is no conclusive proof yet, USA Today reports.
Meanwhile, despite warnings to use protection or abstain, Zika is being transmitted sexually by men who have traveled to the infectious zone to people who have not left the country.
The advice also applies to the 2016 Paralympic Games, which are being held in Brazil in September. Like the other nine, these are women who traveled to Zika-infected areas and returned to the United States.
For most travellers to the south, the risk is generally low and can be further reduced by taking precautions against mosquito bites. And the CDC recently reported that 14 people may have been infected with Zika through sex.
The Art of Travel has also seen some people asking questions about Zika risks, while Uniglobe hasn’t seen much, if any, Zika impact.
The CDC said it continues to investigate 10 more cases. The disease is typically spread by mosquito, and more than two dozen countries have reported cases of local transmission.
“If you are not pregnant and you travelled and you had no symptoms, there is no need to get tested because otherwise Zika is a mild, self-limiting illness”, Shahab said. The CDC received the reports between February 6 and 22.
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“We did not expect to see these brain abnormalities in this small case series of USA pregnant travelers, so it is unexpected and greater than we would have expected”, Jamieson said.
