Zika virus: What you need to know
The Zika virus, an
alarming and disturbing infection that may be linked to thousands of babies
being born with underdeveloped brains, is spreading through the Americas.
Some areas have declared a state of emergency, doctors have
described it as "a pandemic in progress" and some are even advising
women in affected countries to delay getting pregnant.
But what is the virus, how is it spread and how can people
minimise the chances of catching it? Tulip Mazumda explains.
The infection, which
causes symptoms including mild fever, conjunctivitis and headache, has already
been found in 21 countries in the Caribbean, North and South America.
It
has been linked to thousands of babies being born with underdeveloped brains
and some countries have advised women not to get pregnant.
No
treatment or vaccine is available.
The
virus was first detected in 1947 in monkeys in Africa. There have since been
small, short-lived outbreaks in people on the continent, parts of Asia and in
the Pacific Islands.
But it has spread on a
massive scale in the Americas, where transmission was first detected in Brazil
in May 2015.
Large
numbers of the mosquitoes which carry the virus and a lack of any natural
immunity is thought to be helping the infection to spread rapidly.
Zika is
transmitted by the bite of Aedes mosquitoes, which are found in all
countries in the region except Canada and Chile.
In a statement, The Pan
American Health Organization (PAHO), the regional office of the WHO, said:
"PAHO anticipates that Zika virus will continue to spread and will likely
reach all countries and territories of the region where Aedes mosquitoes
are found."
PAHO
is advising people to protect themselves from the mosquitoes, which also spread
dengue fever and chikungunya.
It also confirmed the
virus had been detected in semen and there was "one case of possible
person-to-person sexual transmission" but further evidence was still
needed.
Around
80% of infections do not result in symptoms.
But
the biggest concern is the potential impact on babies developing in the womb.
There have been around 3,500 reported cases of microcephaly - babies born with
tiny brains - in Brazil alone since October.
PAHO
warned pregnant women to be "especially careful" and to see their
doctor before and after visiting areas affected by the virus.
PAHO advice is to ensure
all containers that can hold even small amounts of water should be emptied and
cleaned to prevent mosquitoes breeding.
And
that people should protect themselves by using insect repellent, covering up
and keeping windows and doors closed.
The
director general of the WHO, Margaret Chan, said the outbreak was
"extremely worrisome".
Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador and Jamaica last week recommended women delay pregnancies until more was known
about the virus.
Although officially
PAHO says "any decision to defer pregnancy is an individual one between a
woman, her partner and her healthcare provider".
Maria Conceicao
Queiroz said there was a sense of fear where she lives near the Olympic Park in
Rio de Janeiro: "Every one is at risk, we're all scared of getting Zika.
"We're surrounded
with dirty water, polluted water, but what can we do but put repellent on, to
try to keep the mosquitoes away."
Global threat
Prof Laura Rodrigues,
a fellow of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences and from the London School of
Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said some data suggested that up to one-in-fifty
babies had birth defects in one of the worst hit areas - Pernambuco state in
Brazil.
She said: "Until
November we knew nothing, this has caught us by surprise and we're trying to
learn as fast as we can.
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