Zika virus infection

[Merna]

Zika virus infection is a mosquito-borne viral infection that typically causes no symptoms but can cause fever, rash, joint pain, or infection of the membrane that covers the white of the eye (conjunctivitis, or pinkeye). Zika virus infection in a pregnant woman can cause microcephaly (a serious birth defect) and eye abnormalities in the baby.

The Zika virus is spread by mosquitoes, but it can also be spread through sexual intercourse, through blood transfusions, and from a pregnant woman to her baby before or during birth.
Symptoms of Zika virus infection, if they occur, are usually mild.
Doctors suspect Zika based on a person’s symptoms and recent travel history and confirm the diagnosis based on results of blood or urine tests.
The best ways to prevent Zika virus infection are to avoid being bitten by mosquitoes and to avoid unprotected sex with a partner who has or may have the infection.
There is no specific treatment for Zika virus infection, but rest, plenty of fluids, and acetaminophen to relieve fever and pain can help.

The Zika virus, like the viruses that cause dengue, yellow fever, and chikungunya disease, is an arbovirus, spread by a certain species of mosquito, the Aedes mosquito, which breeds in areas of stagnant water. These mosquitoes prefer to bite people and live near people, indoors and outdoors. They bite aggressively during the day indoors and in shady areas outdoors. They are most active during the several hours after sunrise and before sunset. They also bite at night.
In 1947, the Zika virus was first identified in monkeys in the Zika Forest of Uganda. It was relatively unknown until 2007, when the first large-scale outbreaks occurred in the South Pacific islands. In May 2015, local transmission was reported in South America, then in Central America and in the Caribbean, reaching Mexico by late November 2015. Local transmission means that people are bitten by an infected mosquito where they live or work, as opposed to becoming infected while they were traveling.
As of May 2017, cases of locally transmitted Zika virus infection were reported in Miami-Dade County in southeastern Florida and Brownsville, Texas. As of December 2019, no new cases of locally transmitted Zika virus have been reported in the continental United States. Zika virus infection has been reported in travelers returning to the United States after travel to countries where the virus is transmitted locally.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issues travel alerts when outbreaks occur. As of December 2019, there are no areas with Zika outbreaks.