Situation Report

White House and States to Craft Zika Attack Plan at Summit

Mon, 2016-03-07 08:52 — Kathy Gilbeaux

A sign explaining the parameters concerning the Zika virus and blood donations is seen at the American Red Cross Charles Drew Donation Center in Washington February 16, 2016. REUTERS/GARY CAMERON

CLICK HERE - CDC - Zika Action Plan Summit

reuters.com - by Roberta Rampton - March 4, 2016

The White House and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will gather state and local officials next month to urgently craft a plan to attack the hard-to-control mosquito that spreads the Zika virus.

By June or July, federal health officials expect the first locally transmitted cases of the Zika virus in the continental United States. The virus has been linked to thousands of suspected cases of microcephaly, a rare birth defect, in Brazil.

The White House is inviting officials involved in mosquito control and public health to an April 1 summit at the CDC's Atlanta headquarters to talk about how best to track and control the spread of the virus, and respond when people are affected.

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Study Finds Multiple Problems In Fetuses Exposed To Zika Virus

Sat, 2016-03-05 08:52 — Kathy Gilbeaux

submitted by John Carroll

A woman who is six months pregnant shows a photo of her ultrasound at the IMIP hospital in Recife, Pernambuco state, Brazil, on Wednesday. Scientists are trying to figure out how Zika virus may be affecting fetuses. Felipe Dana/AP

CLICK HERE - NEJM - Zika Virus Infection in Pregnant Women in Rio de Janeiro — Preliminary Report

npr.com - by Rob Stein - March 4, 2016

The Zika virus has sparked international alarm largely because of fears that the pathogen is causing microcephaly, a condition in which babies are born with unusually small heads and damaged brains.

But the preliminary results of a study released Friday suggest Zika can also cause other potentially grave complications for fetuses carried by women who get infected while they are pregnant.

"There seems to be a whole spectrum of conditions that are related to this — not only microcephaly," says Karin Nielsen-Saines, a professor of clinical pediatrics at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA who led the study.

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Fetus of Venezuelan Woman Who Likely Had Zika Dies; Had Microcephaly: Doctors

Sat, 2016-03-05 07:00 — Kathy Gilbeaux

reuters.com - by ALEXANDRA ULMER AND CORINA PONS - March 4, 2016

A fetus whose mother likely had the Zika virus suffered the rare congenital defect known as microcephaly and ultimately died, doctors said on Friday, in the first Venezuelan case linking the infection to damage in babies.

The mosquito-borne virus has been linked to thousands of suspected cases of microcephaly in Brazil, and a recent study has suggested the virus may be associated with stillbirths.

The World Health Organization declared Zika an international health emergency on Feb. 1, citing a "strongly suspected" relationship between Zika infection in pregnancy and microcephaly, a condition in which an infant's head is markedly smaller than those of other babies of similar age and gender.

Public health officials say that link is growing stronger with new evidence, but expect it could take years to prove a connection.

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CLICK HERE - Zika First Trimester Infection Linked To Microcephaly Maturín Venezuela

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House Committee Hearing on Zika Virus - Examining the U.S. Public Health Response to the Zika Virus

Thu, 2016-03-03 09:00 — Kathy Gilbeaux

energycommerce.house.gov - March 2, 2016

The House Committee hearing on Zika virus - Examining the U.S. Public Health Response to the Zika Virus

The Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations held a hearing on Wednesday, March 2, 2016, at 10:15 a.m. in 2322 Rayburn House Office Building, entitled “Examining the U.S. Public Health Response to the Zika Virus.” The Subcommittee heard testimony on the spread of the Zika virus across the Americas, the potential link between Zika and other illnesses, including microcephaly and Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS), and the public health plan to respond to the virus both in the United States and internationally.

https://energycommerce.house.gov/hearings-and-votes/hearings/examining-us-public-health-response-zika-virus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtdWumDEx0U

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Philadelphia Announces First Case of Zika Virus

Tue, 2016-03-01 12:21 — Maeryn Obley

6abc.com - February 29th 2016

The Philadelphia Department of Public Health announced the city's first case of Zika virus on Monday.

The infection was identified in a 60-year-old woman who recently returned from a trip to the Caribbean.

She was not hospitalized, officials said, and is recovering without complications.

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Scientists Find Zika Increases Risk of Rare Neurological Illness

Tue, 2016-03-01 09:55 — Kathy Gilbeaux

Group Leader, Dr Masafumi Inoue of Agency for Science Technology and Research's (A*STAR) Experimental Therapeutics Centre shows a sample to be tested with the Zika virus diagnostic test kit at their laboratory in Singapore, February 10, 2016. REUTERS/EDGAR SU

CLICK HERE - STUDY - The Lancet - Guillain-Barré Syndrome outbreak associated with Zika virus infection in French Polynesia: a case-control study

reuters.com - by Kate Kelland - February 29, 2016

French scientists say they have proved a link between the Zika virus and a nerve syndrome called Guillain-Barre, suggesting countries hit by the Zika epidemic will see a rise in cases of the serious neurological condition.

Guillain-Barre (GBS) is a rare syndrome in which the body's immune system attacks part of the nervous system. . . .

. . . "The regions which are affected by the Zika virus epidemic are likely to see a significant increase in the number of patients with serious neurological complications, and when possible, should increase the capacity of health-care facilities to receive patients needing intensive care."

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Global Response to the Zika Virus - Dr. Gavin Macgregor-Skinner

Sun, 2016-02-28 23:31 — Kathy Gilbeaux

c-span.org - host - Steve Scully - February 28, 2016

Dr. Gavin Macgregor-Skinner talked about the global response to the Zika virus outbreak and the public health risk posed by the virus.

http://www.c-span.org/video/?404988-5/washington-journal-dr-gavin-macgregorskinner-zika-virus-outbreak

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CDC - Zika Virus Microsite

Fri, 2016-02-26 09:52 — Kathy Gilbeaux

tools.cdc.gov

This microsite offers an easy way to share information and stay up to date with developments in the current Zika virus outbreak, including prevention, symptoms, treatment, and information for pregnant women and travelers.

https://tools.cdc.gov/medialibrary/index.aspx#/microsite/id/234558

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The Link Between Zika and Climate Change

Fri, 2016-02-26 09:17 — Kathy Gilbeaux

Miriam Araujo holds her son Lucas, who was born with microcephaly, in Sao Jose dos Cordeiros, Brazil.

Researchers are beginning to tease out the environmental factors that play a role in helping the virus to spread.

theatlantic.com - by Greg Mercer - February 24, 2016

Last year, a team of researchers made a surprising discovery: Aedis aegypti mosquitoes—the species that spreads West Nile Virus, dengue, chickungunya and, most recently, Zika—were living year-round in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Washington, D.C. In a paper published in the American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, the researchers wrote that the mosquitoes had been living in the area since at least 2011, biting and reproducing in the summer months and likely riding out the winter underground. Previously, scientists had believed that the mosquitoes couldn’t survive year-round anyplace north of South Carolina.

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Zika Virus Linked to Paralysis Disorder in U.S., CDC Says

Sun, 2016-02-21 10:28 — Kathy Gilbeaux

Aedes mosquitoes can transmit Zika virus as well as dengue and other diseases. Now, the CDC says it may be connected to Guillain-Barré, a rare condition that can cause paralysis. ISTOCKPHOTO

There are two cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome linked to Zika in the U.S., the CDC says

time.com - by Alexandra Sifferlin - February 18, 2016

Two confirmed cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome linked to the Zika virus have been reported in the U.S., health authorities told TIME on Thursday.

The link between Zika and the birth defect microcephaly has received much attention. But health experts are also concerned about the link between the virus and Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), a condition where the immune system starts attacking the body’s nerves, which leads to weakness that can eventually result in temporary paralysis. In some cases, the disorder can interfere with breathing.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed to TIME that there have been two cases of GBS in the U.S. in people who also tested positive for Zika virus.

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