it’s an emerging disease that has spread
significantly into Central and South
America and it’s causing major alarm at
the World Health Organization welcome to
watchmojo.com –nt we’re counting down
ten crucial facts you should know about
the Zika virus number ten what is the
Zika virus the Zika virus is a
mosquito-borne disease which has been
known to occur in some parts of Africa
and Asia since the 1950s it causes an
illness known as Zika fever which is
likened to a mild form of dengue fever
and has been linked to microcephaly in
babies which is a neurodevelopmental
disorder characterized by the sufferer
having an abnormally small head in 2015
the virus outbreaks spread to the
Americas prompting the World Health
Organization to express alarm quote the
level of concern is high as is the level
of uncertainty said w-h-o
director-general dr. Margaret Chan On
February 1st 2016
the w-h-o declared it a global public
health emergency of international
concern number 9 how does the virus
spread the virus is mainly spread by the
IDS aegypti mosquito found in the
tropical and subtropical areas of the
Americas however due to climate change a
species known as AI days albopictus has
been moving into North America as well
and can be found as far north as the
Great Lakes the IJ’s mosquito usually
bites in the morning or late afternoon
and the w-h-o has issued a series of
recommendations to reduce the risk of
being bitten and contracting the Zika
virus those living in affected areas
have been told to use insect repellant
wear light clothing and to cover up as
much skin as possible number eight which
areas are affected the Zika virus is
mostly found within the tropical
equatorial belt historically it is
existed in parts of Central Africa India
and Indonesia the 2015-2016 outbreak has
caused the most concern in Central
America though and northern regions of
South America since the outbreak
has been reported in Columbia French
Guiana Mexico and Venezuela as well as
many more South and Central American
countries nations worldwide have
strongly advised people to rethink any
travel plans they may have had four
infected regions number seven what is
microcephaly microcephaly is a
neurodevelopmental disorder linked to
the Zika virus typically defined by the
sufferer having a head circumference two
or three standard deviations below the
mean average for his or her age and sex
microcephaly can cause abnormal growth
of the brain and is especially dangerous
for newborn babies the condition which
can develop in the first few years of
life often leads to severely impaired
intellectual development and can cause
problems with motor functions and speech
development with an epidemic that
appears to be just beginning
number six who is in danger pregnant
women have been identified as
particularly in danger of the virus with
some countries already advising women
not to get pregnant at all in El
Salvador it has been suggested that
women delay conception until at least
2018 and similar limits have been put
forward in Jamaica Colombia and Ecuador
in the US officials have specifically
advised pregnant women to postpone any
travel plans to zika-affected countries
quote when we have no other tools to use
right now that’s about the best advice
you can give said Michael osterholm of
the University of Minnesota number five
how do you know if you’ve been infected
though there is no specific test widely
available to identify the Zika virus the
disease’s symptoms are similar to those
experienced during dengue or yellow
fever and it may cross-react with
antibody tests for those viruses if
you’re at all suspicious that you have
been infected with Zika a blood or
tissue sample must be sent to an
advanced laboratory within the first
week of infection
however initial symptoms are usually
fairly mild with only one in five people
infected experiencing any notable
difference including fever rashes and
joint pain number four how has the world
responded the World Health Organization
has said that Zika is quote spreading
explosively and has anticipated
that it will spread in every country in
the Americas excluding Canada and
mainland Chile cases have been reported
in the former because of travellers but
the virus is unlikely to spread in these
two countries because the mosquitoes do
not live there as there is no vaccine
available against Zika authorities
worldwide have focused on controlling
mosquitoes and have urged communities to
pull together in an effort to curb
infection rates nations from all over
the planet have asked their residents to
stop traveling to Zika infected areas
and Canada has asked blood donors to
delay donating blood for at least one
month if they have recently traveled to
affected areas number three how will
this affect the Rio Olympics there is
real concern within the w-h-o and from
other medical advisors in relation to
the upcoming Olympic Games to be held in
Rio de Janeiro
some experts have already suggested that
the virus first came to Brazil during
football’s World Cup which was staged in
2014 and believed that the Olympics will
contribute significantly to Zika
becoming a global problem with around
half a million people expected to travel
to Rio for the games with around 200,000
of those being Americans there is
massive potential for a bite to bite
large-scale spread of the disease that
otherwise may not have occurred number
two is there a cure there is no cure for
the Zika virus with treatment focused on
symptom relief similarly there is no
cure for microcephaly though progress
has been made to ensure that sufferers
are able to live with the condition
despite the illness being close to
dengue fever experts are cautious about
whether any vaccine could be adapted
companies including inovio
Hawaii biotech GSK and Santa Fe are all
at various stages of development for a
Zika vaccine but Santa Fe has recently
underlined the current approach in a
statement it said quote there are too
many unknowns about Zika to reliably
judge the ability to research and
develop a vaccine effectively at this
time number one how will this end
scientists are expected to continue
developing a cure for a disease which
some estimates say will affect up to
four million people in the Americas in
two
thousand 16 for now the focus is on
containment rather than cure
which is why the 2016 Rio Olympic Games
is becoming a cause for alarm it’s
unclear for how long affected countries
will advise women against getting
pregnant and how significantly this will
alter national populations in the future
furthermore international reluctance to
travel to the Americas is likely to
continue until the threat of Zika has
been significantly reduced which is
clearly bad news in terms of tourism in
the meantime countries all over the
world are working to prevent Zika from
entering too aggressively into their
borders did these facts get you thinking
to vote for which news story is covered
next
head over to watchmojo.com slash suggest
and be sure to hit that subscribe button
for more newsworthy top 10s published
every week
significantly into Central and South
America and it’s causing major alarm at
the World Health Organization welcome to
watchmojo.com –nt we’re counting down
ten crucial facts you should know about
the Zika virus number ten what is the
Zika virus the Zika virus is a
mosquito-borne disease which has been
known to occur in some parts of Africa
and Asia since the 1950s it causes an
illness known as Zika fever which is
likened to a mild form of dengue fever
and has been linked to microcephaly in
babies which is a neurodevelopmental
disorder characterized by the sufferer
having an abnormally small head in 2015
the virus outbreaks spread to the
Americas prompting the World Health
Organization to express alarm quote the
level of concern is high as is the level
of uncertainty said w-h-o
director-general dr. Margaret Chan On
February 1st 2016
the w-h-o declared it a global public
health emergency of international
concern number 9 how does the virus
spread the virus is mainly spread by the
IDS aegypti mosquito found in the
tropical and subtropical areas of the
Americas however due to climate change a
species known as AI days albopictus has
been moving into North America as well
and can be found as far north as the
Great Lakes the IJ’s mosquito usually
bites in the morning or late afternoon
and the w-h-o has issued a series of
recommendations to reduce the risk of
being bitten and contracting the Zika
virus those living in affected areas
have been told to use insect repellant
wear light clothing and to cover up as
much skin as possible number eight which
areas are affected the Zika virus is
mostly found within the tropical
equatorial belt historically it is
existed in parts of Central Africa India
and Indonesia the 2015-2016 outbreak has
caused the most concern in Central
America though and northern regions of
South America since the outbreak
has been reported in Columbia French
Guiana Mexico and Venezuela as well as
many more South and Central American
countries nations worldwide have
strongly advised people to rethink any
travel plans they may have had four
infected regions number seven what is
microcephaly microcephaly is a
neurodevelopmental disorder linked to
the Zika virus typically defined by the
sufferer having a head circumference two
or three standard deviations below the
mean average for his or her age and sex
microcephaly can cause abnormal growth
of the brain and is especially dangerous
for newborn babies the condition which
can develop in the first few years of
life often leads to severely impaired
intellectual development and can cause
problems with motor functions and speech
development with an epidemic that
appears to be just beginning
number six who is in danger pregnant
women have been identified as
particularly in danger of the virus with
some countries already advising women
not to get pregnant at all in El
Salvador it has been suggested that
women delay conception until at least
2018 and similar limits have been put
forward in Jamaica Colombia and Ecuador
in the US officials have specifically
advised pregnant women to postpone any
travel plans to zika-affected countries
quote when we have no other tools to use
right now that’s about the best advice
you can give said Michael osterholm of
the University of Minnesota number five
how do you know if you’ve been infected
though there is no specific test widely
available to identify the Zika virus the
disease’s symptoms are similar to those
experienced during dengue or yellow
fever and it may cross-react with
antibody tests for those viruses if
you’re at all suspicious that you have
been infected with Zika a blood or
tissue sample must be sent to an
advanced laboratory within the first
week of infection
however initial symptoms are usually
fairly mild with only one in five people
infected experiencing any notable
difference including fever rashes and
joint pain number four how has the world
responded the World Health Organization
has said that Zika is quote spreading
explosively and has anticipated
that it will spread in every country in
the Americas excluding Canada and
mainland Chile cases have been reported
in the former because of travellers but
the virus is unlikely to spread in these
two countries because the mosquitoes do
not live there as there is no vaccine
available against Zika authorities
worldwide have focused on controlling
mosquitoes and have urged communities to
pull together in an effort to curb
infection rates nations from all over
the planet have asked their residents to
stop traveling to Zika infected areas
and Canada has asked blood donors to
delay donating blood for at least one
month if they have recently traveled to
affected areas number three how will
this affect the Rio Olympics there is
real concern within the w-h-o and from
other medical advisors in relation to
the upcoming Olympic Games to be held in
Rio de Janeiro
some experts have already suggested that
the virus first came to Brazil during
football’s World Cup which was staged in
2014 and believed that the Olympics will
contribute significantly to Zika
becoming a global problem with around
half a million people expected to travel
to Rio for the games with around 200,000
of those being Americans there is
massive potential for a bite to bite
large-scale spread of the disease that
otherwise may not have occurred number
two is there a cure there is no cure for
the Zika virus with treatment focused on
symptom relief similarly there is no
cure for microcephaly though progress
has been made to ensure that sufferers
are able to live with the condition
despite the illness being close to
dengue fever experts are cautious about
whether any vaccine could be adapted
companies including inovio
Hawaii biotech GSK and Santa Fe are all
at various stages of development for a
Zika vaccine but Santa Fe has recently
underlined the current approach in a
statement it said quote there are too
many unknowns about Zika to reliably
judge the ability to research and
develop a vaccine effectively at this
time number one how will this end
scientists are expected to continue
developing a cure for a disease which
some estimates say will affect up to
four million people in the Americas in
two
thousand 16 for now the focus is on
containment rather than cure
which is why the 2016 Rio Olympic Games
is becoming a cause for alarm it’s
unclear for how long affected countries
will advise women against getting
pregnant and how significantly this will
alter national populations in the future
furthermore international reluctance to
travel to the Americas is likely to
continue until the threat of Zika has
been significantly reduced which is
clearly bad news in terms of tourism in
the meantime countries all over the
world are working to prevent Zika from
entering too aggressively into their
borders did these facts get you thinking
to vote for which news story is covered
next
head over to watchmojo.com slash suggest
and be sure to hit that subscribe button
for more newsworthy top 10s published
every week
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