Zika: What You Need to Know
Laurie Saloman
Reviewed by QualityHealth's Medical Advisory Board
Although the Zika virus was discovered in 1947, a recent epidemic centered in Brazil has raised the profile of this microbe. As cases in the South American country have surged due to the spread of infection by the Aedes mosquito, the medical community has realized a link between the mosquito-borne cause of disease and the sharp increase in babies born with microcephaly, a condition in which the head is abnormally small, often because the brain fails to fully develop. Zika also can cause other birth defects or even miscarriage.
This is why the virus, which normally produces few or no symptoms, has become such a concern among women who are or might become pregnant in the near future. A related discovery, that Zika can be transmitted in the semen of infected men, has raised new concerns for the female partners of men who travel to Aedes-infested regions.
https://www.qualityhealth.com/colds-infections-articles/zika-what-you-need-know
