ZIKA

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) just released updated guidance for Zika diagnostic testing.

Margaret Honein, MPH, PhD, chief of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)’s Birth Defects Branch in the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities updated health professionals at a special session on Zika virus infection during the 65th Annual EIS Conference in Atlanta, Georgia.

Rohit Bhalla, DO, Chief of the Section of Infectious Diseases at the University Medical Center of Princeton, shares what other diseases could be mistaken for a Zika virus infection.

Officials are stating that although the first case of locally-acquired Zika virus in the United States may be weeks or months away, the time to prepare is now.

Researchers have found a potential solution for the troubling spread of Zika virus in Brazil and across the Southern hemisphere—and it’s bacteria.

As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) learns more about the threat of Zika virus infection on pregnant women and their growing fetuses, it will continue to share its knowledge with researchers, healthcare providers and the public.

The Ministry of Health (MOH) of Brazil has confirmed 1,271 nationwide cases of microcephaly.

Rohit Bhalla, DO, Chief of the Section of Infectious Diseases at the University Medical Center of Princeton, explains the current guidelines for women with regards to pregnancy and the Zika virus.

Recent data from Bahia State, Brazil, show that Zika virus infection during the first trimester of pregnancy, or early in the second trimester, is associated with the observed increase in infants born with microcephaly.

Zika, Dengue, Chikungunya. These are the most recent viruses causing outbreaks in several regions of the world, all spread through the bite of an infected female Aedes aegypti mosquito. There is currently no cure for these viruses, which makes infection prevention a priority.

Puerto Rico, one of the countries currently experiencing active Zika virus transmission, has reported its first Zika-related death.

The world’s first commercial Zika test has been approved for Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

A sector of the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will support Roche Molecular Systems Inc., of Branchburg New Jersey, in conducting trials to evaluate the company’s Zika blood screen test.

Study suggests that the risk of Zika virus transmission is particularly high in the southeast as well as in south Texas, where locally-acquired cases of Aedes-transmitted viruses have been reported previously.

The first case of sexually transmitted Zika infection in Canada was confirmed on April 25, 2016 by the Public Health Agency of Canada and the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care.

Rohit Bhalla, DO, provides information healthcare practitioners should know about diagnosing a Zika virus infection, particularly as the virus moves in the United States.

On Friday, April 22, 2016, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) collaborated with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to set interim guidance for those working in the fields where exposure to the Zika virus is inevitable.

Rohit Bhalla, DO, Chief of the Section of Infectious Diseases at the University Medical Center of Princeton, explains why the Zika virus is “scarier than [the CDC] originally thought.”

Researchers find evidence to suggest virus strains in the most recent outbreak in the Americas evolved from an Asian lineage.

Researchers have revealed that the disease has been circulating in the region since at least January of 2015.

According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the first case of locally transmitted Zika virus infection in the continental United States is now inevitable. The virus already brings with it fears for pregnant women, and those women trying to become pregnant, but now, a Zika virus infection is likely a risk for all adults as the virus has been linked to yet another neurological disorder.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently reported that the Zika virus can be transmitted from an infected man to a sex partner through anal sex.

After meticulously analyzing existing evidence, CDC scientists concluded that not only does the Zika virus cause microcephaly, but it is also the culprit behind other serious, fatal brain defects.

During a recent press conference, representatives from the CDC and NIAID agreed that the more researchers uncover about Zika, the scarier the virus appears to be.

The Obama administration recently announced plans to shift nearly $600 million in funds designated to battle the Ebola epidemic toward the fight against Zika.