Zika virus spreading explosively

Spread by mosquitos, the Zika virus infected 2,500 people in Brazil last year.

Experts believe it’s only a matter of time before India becomes its next target The Zika virus, transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito (the same vector that is known to transmit dengue and chicken guinea) has spread widely in Brazil with more than 2,500 cases reported in 2015. And according to doctors, the mosquite-borne disease should be a cause for concern in India. Healthcare workers in Brazil woke up to the crisis when pregnant women infected with Zika were discovered to have delivered babies with microcephaly, or, an abnormally small head and incomplete brain development. While medical experts were in the middle of establishing more links between the virus and the birth defect, an advisory issued by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) last week cautioned pregnant women and those of childbearing age against travelling to Brazil and 13 other countries where cases of Zika virus have surfaced.

WHAT IS ZIKA?

The Zika virus is spread from person to person through the bite of an Aedes aegypti mosquito. The most common symptoms of Zika virus disease are fever, rash, joint pain and conjunctivitis. The incubation period for the virus is two to seven days. Like in dengue, patients develop fever, rash and joint pain but in a mild form. Doctors advice against taking aspirin and non-ster oidal anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen and Naproxen. According to CDC, deaths caused by the Zika virus are rare. So far, there’s been one report of possible spread of the virus through blood transfusion and one report of possible spread of the virus through sexual contact

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