Zika Virus
The Zika virus is a disease that comes from the bite of an
infected Aedes species mosquito. The symptoms commonly include fever, rash,
joint pain and red eyes. There is currently no vaccine that exists to prevent
the disease. Prevention for this disease is more reliant on your environment
and precautions that can help you avoid the disease. One way is to avoid
mosquito bites, which usually occur more during the daytime. When traveling to countries where Zika virus orother viruses spread by mosquitoes are found, take the following steps: wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants, stay in places with air
conditioning or that use windows and door screens to keep mosquitoes outside,
sleep under a mosquito bed net if you are overseas or outside and are not able
to protect yourself from mosquito bites and use insect repellent.
Control once someone has the Zika virus is
a critical part to help stop the spread of disease. Duringthe first week of infection, Zika virus can be found in the blood and passedfrom an infected person to another mosquito through mosquito bites. An infectedmosquito can then spread the virus to other people. The virus can be spread through semen from a
man to his sex partners, however it is not known how long it is present in
semen. Preventionand control relies on reducing the breeding of Aedes mosquitoes andminimizing contact between mosquito vectors and people by using barriers (suchas repellents, insect screens), reducing water-filled habitats supportingmosquito larvae in and close to dwellings, and reducing the adult mosquitopopulations around at-risk communities. It is imperative for people traveling to high-risk
areas to follow perceptions and protect themselves from the disease.
