ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
By Chuck Raasch
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Mosquito season is here, and with it comes the possibility of the Zika virus, a relatively new health risk in the continental United States, especially for pregnant women.
The virus has been found to cause microcephaly, which attacks the brain of fetuses, and other birth defects. Health-care officials caution Americans to be cognizant of the threat but not to overreact. Four out of five people who get the virus show no signs of having it.
More than 500 cases of the virus have been reported in the continental United States, but none yet from mosquito transmission. If the infection follows previous outbreaks of dengue and chikungunya— two viruses carried by the same mosquito that also transmits Zika — then mosquito-borne outbreaks are likely to be local and primarily in the southern United States, health officials say.
The virus can also be sexually transmitted, so cases involving people who have traveled to areas of the world where Zika is more prevalent, such as Puerto Rico or Brazil, are likely to be in the headlines this summer.
The mosquitoes that can carry the virus are normally found in Missouri and Illinois. Health officials advise protecting yourself with mosquito repellent, including Deet; to avoid travel to areas known to have the virus if you are pregnant; and for men to use condoms if they have traveled to countries where the disease is mosquito borne, since researchers recently discovered it can be transmitted through sexual intercourse.
Dr. Tom Frieden, the director of the United States’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, addressed Zika during a speech at the National Press Club, and he met later with reporters from six news organizations, including the Post-Dispatch.
Here is Frieden’s advice on Zika:
Q: What are your expectations on how widespread the infection will be in the United States?
A: We don’t expect large numbers. Travel-associated, could be thousands, or even more, because (there are) millions of travelers, so lots of travel-associated cases. How many of them are pregnant depends on how many women follow our advice and don’t travel (to areas where the virus has already been known to be transmitted by mosquitoes) and how many men who travel follow our advice and use condoms with pregnant partners. But we don’t expect widespread transmission in the U.S. You can see clusters in some communities for which we really do need to be prepared.
Read the full story, including additional Q&A, on the St. Louis Post-Dispatch website.
