Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala reported two more cases of Zika virus on Tuesday, which takes the total number of infection to 21, said state Health Minister Veena George.
Earlier on Wednesday, the state reported its first case of Zika virus where a 24-year-old pregnant woman from Parasala in Thiruvananthapuram district tested positive.
Kerala government launched a state-wide vector-borne disease control programme after the cases of Zika virus started spreading. The hospitals have been instructed to test patients, especially pregnant women, with fever, rashes and body pain.
It is to be noted that, Zika virus is transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquitoes that also transmit dengue, chikungunya and yellow fever.
The Symptoms of the Zika Virus include fever, rash, and joint pain, headache, or malaise. The synonyms generally last for 2–14 days. The detection of the Zika virus is associated with many problems such as premature birth or miscarriage. A pregnant woman who is infected with the Zika virus can also cause infants to be born with congenital Zika syndrome.
This syndrome is associated with abnormalities like abnormally formed or absent brain structures, hydrocephalus, and neuronal migration disorders, etc. According to WHO, It is said that there is no treatment discovered for the Zika virus so far.
Currently, there are no vaccines or cure for Zika virus. The virus was first isolated in 1947 in Uganda’s zika forest.
Ms Kalinga