Federal health officials confirmed Wednesday that the Zika virus causes microcephaly and other birth defects when the mother is infected during pregnancy. Dr. Sonja Rasmussen, editor-in-chief of CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report and an author on the report, says the conclusion came from looking systematically through the accumulating evidence.
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“This study marks a turning point in the Zika outbreak”, said Frieden.
While mosquitos are still the primary vector for spreading Zika virus, the new report hints that we have more to learn about other modes of transmission.
Among the evidence that clinched the case: Signs of the Zika virus, which is spread primarily through mosquito bites and can also be transmitted through sex, have been found in the brain tissue, spinal fluid and amniotic fluid of microcephaly babies.
Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, the C.D.C. director, said that there is absolutely no doubt that Zika Virus causes Microcephaly. Correspondence: Evidence of Sexual Transmission of Zika Virus. Anne Schuchat, principal deputy director at the CDC, has said the Aedes aegypti mosquito, the primary vector of Zika, resides in 30 states. Are pregnancy losses, miscarriage, stillbirth among some women infected by Zika virus the result of the infection?
CDC officials said they hoped the findings would also raise public awareness of the seriousness of the Zika threat.
The Zika virus is far more damaging and scarier than previously thought.
Southern Nevada Health District Chief Health Officer Joseph Iser said he could imagine Clark County seeing dozens of cases by the time summer is over. As has been seen during the current Zika outbreak, some infected women have delivered babies that appear to be healthy.
The birth defect microcephaly has been linked with the Zika virus since it first hit headlines in early 2015, but there had yet to be anything near conclusive on that front.
Most people who are infected have no symptoms, but some experience mild flu-like symptoms and skin rashes.
Often, babies born with abnormally small heads suffer from underdeveloped brains and other serious complications including vision problems, though there’s some variability there.
Freiden said the CDC was launching new studies to investigate the potential scope of Zika’s impact.
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The man who contracted the disease “had regularly traveled to Central and South America for many years”, according to the CDC.
