The
Florida State Department of Health has confirmed that there is a high
likelihood that at least four cases of Zika Virus in Miami-Dade County are the
result of local transmission; i.e. that the patients have caught the Virus
locally, rather than while travelling in another area where the Virus is
endemic. Zika Virus is a Mosquito-transmitted disease that usually only causes
a rash, mild fever and/or joint pain. However a recent epidemic of the disease,
centred on Brazil and affecting a number of other South and Central American
countries and Caribbean Islands, has been linked to a range of birth defects,
in particular microcephaly, severe underdevelopment of the brain leading to
profound life-long learning disabilities.
A
total of 331 case of Zika have been reported in Florida, including 55 affecting
pregnant women, with the largest clusters of infections in Miami-Dade (99
cases), Broward (55 cases) and Orange (40 cases) counties. The Florida State
Department of Health is carrying out active monitoring of affected areas,
including door-to-door outreach and urine sample collection, as well as
trapping and testing of Mosquitoes. While no Zika-positive Mosquitoes have yet
been discovered, the Department is confident that the state has at least one
area where local transmission of Zika Virus is occurring, an area in Miami-Dade
County bounded by NW 5th Avenue to the west, US 1 to the east, NW/NE
38th Street to the north and NW/NE 20th Street to the south.
The confirmed area
of the Miami-Dade Zika Virus outbreak. Google Maps/Florida State Department of
Health.
As a
precautionary measure local blood banks are excluding donors from areas where
Zika has been reported, and the Florida State Department of Health is
recommending any women who have travelled to affected areas should seek testing
for the Virus and additional ultrasound scans from their healthcare provider.
It also recommends that all Floridians protect themselves against Zika and
other Mosquito-transmitted diseases by regularly draining any standing water
close to their homes, by covering windows with screens and using Mosquito repellent
when outdoors.
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