CDC shares tips to protect Americans from the Zika virus

What do you need to know about Zika? That depends on who you are, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

APHA’s Get Ready Report podcast recently spoke with Ben Beard, PhD, branch chief for the Bacterial Diseases Branch in the Division of Vector-Borne Disease at the National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, to find out how to protect ourselves from the disease.

Since 2015, more than 8,500 people in U.S. states, territories and Washington, D.C., have been diagnosed with Zika, according to CDC. Most of those cases have occurred in Puerto Rico, where a public health emergency was declared last week.

Beard shared information that can benefit all Americans, especially pregnant women, travelers, outdoor workers and people living in areas where Zika might be spreading. Zika can be spread by mosquito bites, through sexual contact or from a pregnant woman to her fetus during pregnancy or delivery.

Beard recommended that Americans protect themselves from Zika by:

• using mosquito repellent and wearing clothing to cover their arms and legs,
• avoiding travel to places where Zika is being actively transmitted, and
• protecting themselves during sex by using condoms or other barrier methods.

Beard said that public health professionals have an important role to play, especially as parents and kids begin back to school plans.

“There is a really unique opportunity for public health authorities, as school seasons start, to work with schools to make sure that risk of Zika transmission can be minimized,” Beard said. “Public health authorities in school districts can proactively and collaboratively establish direct communication channels and clearly define each partner’s roles and responsibilities.”

Listen to our podcast with Beard now.

Share the facts on Zika in English and Spanish

Photo: CDC/ Cynthia Goldsmith

How much do you know about Zika virus? If you’re reading this, chances are you have some knowledge of the virus, which is spread by mosquitoes and is of growing concern to public health.

However, many Americans are confused about Zika, recent polls have shown. For example, an April survey found 40 percent of people didn’t know the virus could be spread by sex. While Zika virus has not been transmitted by mosquitoes to humans in U.S. states yet, there’s a good chance it will be soon. So now’s the time to bone up on the facts.

You can help share information on Zika with your family, friends and community with APHA’s Get Ready fact sheet. Available now in English and Spanish, the fact sheet explains how Zika is spread, how it can be prevented and who’s most at risk. Organizations can even add their logo to the fact sheet.

Read the fact sheet, share it on social media and download the PDF. And while you’re at it, tell Congress to fund Zika prevention and research so public health can be prepared, too.

Zika is officially linked to microcephaly, CDC says

Photo: CDC/
 Division of Vector-borne Diseases

It’s official: According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Zika virus causes microcephaly and other severe fetal brain defects.

CDC scientists reviewed the evidence that’s been collected so far on Zika and this week confirmed the link to microcephaly, a birth defect in which a baby is born with a small head and other possible developmental problems.

But wait, didn’t we know that already? Well, sort of. Since reports of microcephaly spiked in Brazil in 2015, scientists have strongly suspected the link to Zika. But there wasn’t enough science or review for U.S. health officials to say with 100 percent surety. And now they have.

“This study marks a turning point in the Zika outbreak,” said CDC Director Tom Frieden. “It is now clear that the virus causes microcephaly.”

CDC’s Zika guidance for pregnant women hasn’t changed: Pregnant women should avoid traveling to areas where Zika is being spread, among other recommendations.

To help share the facts on Zika, APHA’s Get Ready campaign has created an easy-to-understand Zika fact sheet. It’s been updated this week to share the new finding from CDC. You can download the fact sheet now to share in your community and with friends and family.