14 people infected with Zika virus in south Florida

Florida confirmed Monday 10 more homegrown cases of Zika in people infected by local mosquitoes, leading federal health officials to advise women who are pregnant to avoid the area just north of downtown Miami where Zika is spreading.

Women who have visited the Wynwood neighborhood in Miami since June 15 should avoid getting pregnant for at least eight weeks, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Zika, which can cause devastating birth defects, appears to have begun spreading among mosquitoes in this area around June 15.


How do people catch Zika virus?

Zika virus is primarily transmitted to people through the bite of an infected Aedes mosquito, which also transmits chikungunya, dengue and yellow fever. The Culex mosquito may also transmit Zika.

A study, conducted by Fiocruz Pernambuco, detected the presence of Zika virus in Culex quinquefasciatus mosquitoes. These samples were collected in Recife, Brazil, in houses where people had Zika. Further studies are needed on the transmission potential of the Culex. WHO continues to update information and recommendations as more research contributes to the growing knowledge base on Zika virus and its complications.

Zika virus can also be transmitted through sex and has been detected in semen, blood, urine, amniotic fluids, saliva as well as body fluids found in the brain and spinal cord.

The infection, known as Zika fever or Zika virus disease, often causes no or only mild symptoms, similar to a very mild form of dengue fever. While there is no specific treatment, paracetamol (acetaminophen) and rest may help with the symptoms. As of 2016, the illness cannot be prevented by medications or vaccines. Zika can also spread from a pregnant woman to her fetus. This can result in microcephaly, severe brain malformations, and other birth defects. Zika infections in adults may result rarely in Guillain–Barré syndrome.

The new Zika cases in Miami bring the number of Zika infections spread by local mosquitoes — as opposed to foreign travel — to 14.

Controlling the cluster of Zika cases is proving difficult, CDC director Tom Frieden said, noting that more diagnoses related to the neighborhood are possible.

All pregnant women should take steps to prevent mosquito bites, Frieden said. The mosquito species that spreads Zika, the Aedes aegypti, lives in 30 states, in addition to territories such as Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.


Disclaimer: This is a nonprofit blog. My objective, as a young girl born in 1999, is just to share my passion for Medicine by giving the world some information about the latest tendencies in this field. Please click on the links below to obtain a more detailed information about the articles I have used as a source.

http://www.who.int/features/qa/zika/en/

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2016/08/01/florida-announces-10-more-homegrown-zika-cases/87910664/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zika_virus