6 things to know about the Zika virus, spread by the Aedes mosquito

(THESTRAITSTIMES)WhiletherehasnotbeenanyZikaviruscasesdetectedinSingaporesofar,theMinistryofHealth(MOH)announcedonSunday(Jan24)thatitwasmonitoringthevirussituationclosely.

Theministryisalsoconsideringtakingprecautionarymeasuresagainstthevirus,whichisspreadingfastacrossLatinAmericaandissuspectedofcausingbirthdefects.

USauthoritiesonFridayexpandeditstravelwarningforpregnantwomentoavoid22placesinLatinAmericaandtheCaribbean,whileaThaimanwashospitalisedwiththevirusafterarrivinginTaiwanearlierthismonth.

Herearesomeimportantthingstoknowaboutthevirus.

1.WhatistheZikavirus?

AresearcheratBrazil'sUniversityofSaoPaulospeakingabouttheZikavirus.PHOTO:AFP

Theword"zika"isderivedfromtheZikaforestinUganda,wheretheviruswasfirstisolatedbyscientistsin1947fromasentinelrhesusmonkey.

Transmittedtohumansviamosquitoes,theAedesmosquito-whichalsospreadsdengueandchikungunya-istheonlyknowncarrierofthevirus.

2.Whatarethesymptomstolookoutfor?

Thesymptomsassociatedwiththevirusareusuallyquitemild,andonlyaboutoneinfivepeopleinfectedactuallyfallill.

Commonsignstolookoutforincludeaslightfever,rash,conjuctivitis,headacheaswellasjointandmusclepain.

Theincubationperiodisnotknown,butislikelytorangebetweenafewdaystoaweek.Duringthefirstweekofinfection,theviruscanbefoundinthebloodandpassedfromaninfectedpersontoamosquitothroughmosquitobites.

Hospitalisationduetothevirusisnotcommon,whiledeathsarerare.

3.Canthevirusbetreated?

VariousbrandsofmosquitorepellentseeninapharmacyinSaoPaulo.PHOTO:AFP

Thereiscurrentlynovaccineavailableforthevirus,soonlythesymptomscanbetreated.

Toavoidgettinginfected,useinsectrepellent,wearclothingthatcoverthebody,armsandlegs,andsleepundermosquitonetsorinroomswithwiremesh.

AswithmeasurestocurbthespreadofdengueandpreventthebreedingoftheAedesmosquito,thepublicshouldalsoensurethereisnostagnantwaterathome.

4.Isthevirusreallylinkedtoabirthdefect?

TheZikavirusisallegedtocausemicrocephaly,aneurologicaldisorderinwhichinfantsarebornwithsmallercraniumsandbrains.

TherehasbeenasalarmingriseinmicrocephalyinBraziloverthepastyear,with3,893casesreportedsinceJan16.Therewerealso49reporteddeathsofdeformedbabies.

Butthusfar,healthauthoritiesinthecountryhaveonlyconfirmedsixcasesofmicrocephalywheretheinfantwasinfectedwiththeviruspassedonfromthemother.

InvestigationsareongoinginBraziltoconfirmthatthereisacausallinkbetweenthetwo.MorestudiesarealsoreportedlybeingplannedtolearnmoreabouttherisksofaZikavirusinfectionduringpregnancy

5.Howmanycountrieshavereportedactivetransmissionofthevirus?

InMay2015,thePanAmericanHealthOrganisation(PAHO)firstissuedanalertaboutanoutbreakinBrazil.

Currently,22areasinLatinAmericaandtheCaribbeanhaveactiveZikavirustransmission.USauthoritiesonFriday(Jan22)expandeditstravelwarningforpregnantwomentoavoidthe22places.

TheyareBarbados,Bolivia,Brazil,CapeVerde,Colombia,Ecuador,ElSalvador,FrenchGuiana,Guadeloupe,Guatemala,Guyana,Haiti,Honduras,Martinique,Mexico,Panama,Paraguay,PuertoRico,SaintMartin,Samoa,SurinamandVenezuela.

ThreepeopleinNewYorkwhotravelledtoareaswheretheviruswasspreadingrapidlytestedpositiveforthevirus,cityofficialssaidonFriday.

OnJan15,theUSannounceditsfirstcaseoftheviruswhenababybornwithbraindamageinaHawaiihospitalwasconfirmedashavingbeeninfectedbyZika.Thebaby'smotherwasbelievedtohavehadaZikainfectionwhilelivinginBrazilinMaylastyear,withthebabyprobablyinfectedinthewomb.

6.ShouldSingaporeandtherestoftheregionbeworried?

Before2015,theZikavirushadbeendetectedinareasinAfrica,South-eastAsiaandthePacificIslands.

AccordingtoajournalpublishedbyMOHinMarch2014,twotouristsfromCanadaandGermanywerediagnosedwithZikafeverafterreturningfromThailandin2013.Thatsameyear,AustraliaalsoreportedacaseofZikafeverinareturningcitizenfromIndonesia.

ThesecasesmayhaveindicatedthepresenceofanoutbreakofthevirusinThailandandIndonesia,thejournalsaid.

OnTuesday,Taiwanhaditsfirstreportedcaseofthevirus.A24-year-oldmanfromnorthernThailandwashospitalisedinthecountryaftertravellingthereforworkonJan10.