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LatinNews Daily - 18 January 2016

US health authorities warn about travel to Brazil

Development: On 15 January the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warned pregnant women not to travel to 14 countries in Latin America, including Brazil, due to an outbreak of the zika virus.

Significance: The zika virus, common in Africa and Asia, was detected in Brazil for the first time in May 2015. Like dengue, yellow fever and chikungunya, it is transmitted by the Aedes Aegypti mosquito, which breeds easily in any small pool of stagnant water. Initially, zika was thought to be relatively mild; only one in five carriers developed symptoms. But in October 2015, health specialists in north-eastern Brazil noticed a strong correlation between pregnant women with zika and an increase in cases of microcephaly, a type of brain damage in babies.

  • Included in the CDC’s warning are Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Suriname, Venezuela, and Puerto Rico. It is Brazil, however, which is currently experiencing the worst known outbreak of the disease. Though the link between microcephaly and zika is still unclear, in a normal year around 150 babies are born with the condition; last year 3,500 babies were born with the condition.
  • With no vaccine and no cure, Brazil’s health authorities are limited to public information campaigns about eliminating breeding sites for the Aedes Aegypti mosquito. On 16 January, the health ministry announced the roll-out of new testing kits for zika, dengue and chikungunya, with pregnant women to have priority for their usage. The ministry also announced new funding for research into creating an anti-zika vaccine.

Looking Ahead: In the city of Rio de Janeiro, the local authorities are worried about the CDC’s warning on the impact on international tourism ahead of the 2016 Summer Olympic Games, due to start in August. A spokesman from the local organising committee said that they would have a team scouring the venues on a daily basis to eliminate possible mosquito breeding sites.

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