There have been nine confirmed cases of pregnant women with the Zika virus and ten more are being evaluated. Five of the pregnancies have resulted in miscarriages or in the pregnancies being terminated by the mothers. One of the five babies was full term and born with microcephaly. With the four remaining pregnancies two babies were full term and were born with no birth defects and the other two mothers are still pregnant.
All of the 19 women has travelled to a Zika-infested area of the tropics. The CDC says that more than 30 million Americans travel to these areas annually and they are expected more cases in the future.
Brazil has been hit the hardest since last October where 5,600 cases of microcephaly have been discovered. What is very strange is that it has yet to be proven that the blamed mosquito is causing this epidemic. Since all the babies had been infected with the Zika virus, the conclusion is predictable.
Just a bad as the birth defects, the Zika virus also infects adults and causes the Guillain-Barre syndrome. This disease attacks the muscles and immune system of a body and can –and has –caused death. So infants are not the only ones at risk.
It appears that Zika is the most dangerous to women who are in their first trimester. "Among two women with Zika virus infection, who had symptoms during the second trimester of pregnancy, one apparently healthy infant has been born and one pregnancy is continuing. One pregnant woman reported symptoms of Zika virus infection in the third trimester of pregnancy, and she delivered a healthy infant," CDC added.
There have now been 12 cases in the US where the virus has been determined to be from sexual contact. In each of these cases the man had returned from a trip from one of the tropical destinations. They had unprotected sex with their partners while they had symptoms of the virus like a fever or rash. "Health care providers should now consider any person who has had condomless sex (i.e., vaginal inter¬course, anal intercourse, or fellatio) with a male partner who has traveled to an area of ongoing Zika virus transmission and who has had symptoms of Zika virus disease during travel or within two weeks of return as potentially exposed," the CDC advised.
While most know who have kept up with this growing public health emergency as declared by the World Health Organization, Zika has been found in the sperm of infected men. Now it also has been found in saliva. Since all the research is fluid and new bulletins are issued every day, the saliva issue will be consistently studied. Right now health authorities have not determined just how long Zika remains in semen. Original warnings cautioned men to wear condoms for 28 days after they had been cured of the virus.
There will be a whole new area of concern as we approach the Olympics which are to be held in Brazil, the worst of the infected areas to date. It is doubtful that any of the contestants will be pregnant, but some of the men could be married thus bringing the virus home with them. Will countries pull their athletes from the events for fear of these healthy competitors risking getting bit and developing Guillain-Barre syndrome? In many of the events the athletes are wearing running shorts and bathing suits. It would be counter-productive to require that all wear long pants, socks and long-sleeved shirts. How much mosquito repellant is enough?
We know that Brazil has announced 5,600 cases of microcephaly within the past 90 days. But there has not been a number reported on the cases of Guillain-Barre syndrome. This same mosquito causes several other diseases but none of them have been reported as sexually transmitted.
CDC announces more cases of sexually transmitted cases of Zika in the US
Doctor of Sexual Health at the NHS Royal London Hospital & Relationship Expert. Columnist at britishcondoms.uk. An advocate of safe sex. Avid Arsenal fan.
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