The Mississippi State Department of Health issued the following press release:
Health Officials Confirm One New West Nile Virus Case, Three New Travel-Associated Zika Cases
JACKSON, Miss. –
The Mississippi State Department of
Health (MSDH) reports one new human case of West Nile virus (WNV),
bringing the 2016 state total to five. The reported case is in Lamar
County.
So far this year human cases of WNV have been reported in Hinds, Grenada, Lamar (2), and Rankin counties.
The MSDH only reports laboratory-confirmed cases to the public. In 2015, Mississippi had 38 WNV cases and one death.
Additionally, today
the MSDH reports three new travel-associated cases of Zika virus,
bringing the 2016 total to 14 in Mississippi. The cases were a resident
of Harrison County who recently traveled to Honduras
and two Panola County residents who recently traveled to the Caribbean
Island of Grenada.
Zika is a
mosquito-borne virus that causes severe birth defects in a developing
fetus – including brain damage, hearing and vision loss, and impaired
growth – if the mother is infected during pregnancy.
Zika virus infection can cause a mild illness with symptoms (fever,
joint pain, conjunctivitis or rash) lasting for several days to a week,
but 80 percent of those infected have mild symptoms or no symptoms at
all. Death is very rare. The MSDH strongly advises
pregnant women not to travel to countries where Zika is actively being
transmitted.
Zika has been seen in
parts of Africa, Southeast Asia, and some Pacific islands for years,
but has recently been reported in approximately 50 countries, mostly in
the Caribbean, Central and South America. The
breed of mosquito that is spreading Zika – Aedes aegypti – has not been detected in Mississippi since the early 1990s. The MSDH is currently conducting surveillance for
Aedes mosquito populations in every county in the state.
“It’s important to
remember that all of our cases that have been reported in Mississippi
are travel related. It is crucial that pregnant women not travel to
countries where Zika is actively being transmitted,”
said MSDH State Epidemiologist Dr. Thomas Dobbs. “Additionally, West
Nile virus continues to be a major health threat in Mississippi.
We are now in peak West Nile
season, and we advise all Mississippians to continue to take precautions
to prevent infection as we move through the late months.”
Symptoms of WNV
infection are often mild and may include fever, headache, nausea,
vomiting, a rash, muscle weakness or swollen lymph nodes. In a small
number of cases, infection can result in encephalitis or
meningitis, which can lead to paralysis, coma and possibly death.
The MSDH suggests the following precautions to protect yourself and your environment from mosquito-borne illnesses:
·
Use an EPA-registered mosquito repellent that contains DEET while you are outdoors.· Remove all sources of standing water around your home and yard to prevent mosquito breeding.
· Wear loose, light-colored, long clothing to cover the arms and legs when outdoors.
· Avoid areas where mosquitoes are prevalent.
5 comments:
Is there is a test that a woman can take to see if she has been exposed to ZIKA if she wants to try and have a baby?
- YES -
•Contact your doctor or other healthcare provider who will order blood tests to look for Zika or other similar viruses like dengue or chikungunya.
We also have crazy ants coming our way,cant stop them,this is going to be a problem for us ,they are in Bay StLouis,Ms now,,,,,
7:15, we already have ants that have killed out the fire ants.
Delighted that our congress appropriated money to combat Zika.
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