There has been a lot of attention given to this emerging threat against pregnant women and their unborn babies, and we at Macaroni Kid want to make sure you have information that can help you understand what the virus is, and what risks it poses to you and your family.
Zika virus is spread through the bite of an infected mosquito. The virus causes mild symptoms in most people, and so far, the number of people that have required hospitalization has been minimal. In fact, many infected people report no symptoms. This virus rarely causes death. Zika has been transmitted through blood transfusions and sexual contact.
Symptoms include fever, rash, join pain, conjunctivitis (red eyes), headache and muscle pain. The symptoms don’t last long, usually a couple of days to a week, and researchers are still trying to determine the incubation period (the time from exposure to the onset of symptoms). At present, it is believed the incubation period is a few days to a week.
Prior to last year, outbreaks occurred in Southeast Asia, Africa and the Pacific Islands, but in May 2015, the first cases of Zika virus began to appear in Brazil. The CDC notes that there are now outbreaks occurring in Central America, Mexico and the Caribbean.
In the United States, all cases of Zika have been acquired when the infected person traveled outside the US. There are currently 19 states in the US with active Zika infections.
Zika virus can be transmitted from a mother to her unborn child, and serious birth defects have been seen in mothers who were infected with the virus while pregnant. One of the most serious defects being noted is microcephaly. This is a condition in which a baby’s head is much smaller than normal, usually due to the fact that the baby’s brain did not develop properly during pregnancy or stopped growing after birth.
Babies born with microcephaly often have other problems such as seizures, developmental delays, hearing loss, movement and balance issues, difficulty swallowing, and vision problems. Doctors are not able to predict at birth just how many of these issues a baby with mircrocephaly will have, so babies will need to be monitored regularly.
It is important to note here that researchers have not found a definitive cause-and-effect link between Zika virus and mircocephaly yet. Researchers are still trying to determine how the virus can pass from mother to baby, and there is no known case of an infant contracting the virus through breastfeeding.
Health officials are currently advising pregnant women to delay travel to areas where Zika infections are occurring. You can find the travel notices here.
The best way to prevent Zika infection is to protect you and your family from mosquito bites. The species of mosquito most likely to spread the virus are daytime bitters, so if you’re outside during the day, wear long-sleeved shirts and pants, and use insect repellent. Avoid having areas of standing water around your home, as these are the prime locations for mosquitoes to lay their eggs. Keep mosquitoes out of your home by making sure your window and door screens do not have holes in them, and use the air conditioning whenever possible.
Much of our country is still in the grips of winter temperatures, so mosquito activity is quite limited, at least in the colder areas. However, in parts of the country where the temperature is consistently above 50 degrees, mosquito activity can continue year round. As the temperatures warm up in the spring across the country, health officials do expect to see the virus spread.
If you’re pregnant, or planning to become pregnant, take precautions and keep yourself informed by visiting the CDC website for updates.
