The Zika virus is essentially transmitted to people when one is bit by
an infected mosquito mostly found in tropical regions. The virus is
transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito. The virus belongs to the same
family as Chikungunya, Dengue, Yellow fever and West Nile. However,
unlike some of the aforementioned viruses, there is currently no vaccine
that can be used to prevent or even treat the infection. Until
recently, Zika was largely an obscure virus confined to Asia and
Equatorial Africa.
The virus was first discovered in the year 1947 when a handful of
scientists making a study of the Yellow fever in the Zika forest Uganda
stumbled on a virus hitherto unknown. The scientists made the discovery
of the unknown virus at the time in a feverish rhesus monkey. Fast
forward to the year 1958 and it was discovered that the virus was mainly
transmitted or spread through the bite of the aggressive Aedes mosquito
though it can also be spread sexually.
The major cause of concern about the virus is its peculiar and alarming
connection to microcephaly. Microcephaly is essentially a neurological
disorder resulting to newborns spotting an abnormally smaller head. The
resultant effect is of cause severe developmental issues and in extreme
circumstances, death. From November 2015, Brazil alone has registered
4180 cases of microcephaly in babies born to women that acquired the
virus during pregnancy. This is a far cry to the meager 146 cases that
were registered in the year 2014.
How the Zika virus is spread?
Transmission of the Zika virus is
primarily through the Aedes mosquito. The virus is transmitted when the
Aedes mosquito bites a person with an active infection and thereafter
spreading it through biting other people. The symptoms of the virus are
not severe but mild and include possible pink eye, fever, headache as
well as a rash. In fact, up to 80% of individuals infected with the
virus never have an idea that they are infected.
What you can do to protect yourself against Zika?
Considering
the fact that there exists no vaccine or treatment for the Zika virus,
the only way to protect oneself from the virus is through taking
preventative measures. For starters, you can desist from travelling to
areas with an active infestation. Secondly, you should avoid mosquito
bites by sleeping under a mosquito net. Thirdly, make it a habit to wear
long sleeved shirts as well as long pants that are thick enough to
prevent a mosquito bite. Fourthly, ensure that you sleep in lodgings
with screened windows and air conditioned rooms. If you are already
infected from the virus, the best way to keep people around you safe is
through taking measures not to be bitten by a mosquito.
What is being done to stop Zika?
Efforts to create a Zika
vaccine have taken center stage with researchers doing everything in
their power to ensure that the Zika virus is a thing of the past.
However, until there is a breakthrough, it is important for people to
implement conventional mosquito control techniques such as emptying
standing water which is a fertile mosquito breeding ground, sleeping
under nets as well as spraying pesticides.
CDC map illustrates areas affected or possibly affected by the spread of Zika virus
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