Colombia has reported the largest number of Zika cases in Latin America after Brazil. Colombia has now registered more than 37,000 cases of people infected with Zika, including more than 6,300 pregnant women, reported the country's National Institute of Health.
The latest count, based on data reported as of February 13, 2016, reflects an increase of 5,456 cases of the mosquito-borne virus in the last week for which data is available.
Zika Fever
Zika virus is transmitted to humans by infected mosquitoes which causes mild fever with maculopapular rash. No treatment or vaccine is currently available.
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‘Colombia has now registered more than 37,000 cases of people infected with Zika, including more than 6,300 pregnant women.’
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The rapid spread of the virus has raised alarms in Latin America because it has been tentatively linked to a serious birth defect known as microcephaly in babies born to women who became infected while pregnant. Microcephaly is an irreversible condition in which a baby is born with an abnormally small head and brain.
The Institute said 6,356 of the 37,011 Zika cases recorded so far involve pregnant women.
Laboratory tests have confirmed the presence of Zika in 522 of those cases.
![Brazil Uses Drones to Detect and Destroy Mosquitoes That Transmit Zika]( "Brazil Uses Drones to Detect and Destroy Mosquitoes That Transmit Zika")
Cities in Brazil are using drones to detect and destroy the breeding grounds of the Aedes aegypti mosquito that transmits Zika, dengue and chikungunya viruses.
Clinical exams were used to identify 30,148 Zika cases in Colombia. Laboratory tests confirmed infections in 1,612 cases, and 5,251 were listed as suspected Zika infections.
Health authorities project that more than 600,000 people will be infected with the Zika virus this year in Colombia, and expect there will be more than 500 cases of microcephaly if trends seen in Brazil are borne out.
The Colombian health ministry also has reported three deaths from Guillain-Barre syndrome, a neurological disorder that is also suspected of being linked to the virus.
Source: AFP
Laboratory tests have confirmed the presence of Zika in 522 of those cases.
Brazil Uses Drones to Detect and Destroy Mosquitoes That Transmit Zika
Cities in Brazil are using drones to detect and destroy the breeding grounds of the Aedes aegypti mosquito that transmits Zika, dengue and chikungunya viruses.
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Clinical exams were used to identify 30,148 Zika cases in Colombia. Laboratory tests confirmed infections in 1,612 cases, and 5,251 were listed as suspected Zika infections.
Health authorities project that more than 600,000 people will be infected with the Zika virus this year in Colombia, and expect there will be more than 500 cases of microcephaly if trends seen in Brazil are borne out.
The Colombian health ministry also has reported three deaths from Guillain-Barre syndrome, a neurological disorder that is also suspected of being linked to the virus.
Source: AFP
Swift Action Needed To Minimize Economic Impact Of Zika Outbreak: World Bank
The impact of the mosquito-borne Zika virus will be modest, if $3.5 billion, or 0.06 percentage points is taken off of gross domestic output (GDP) for the affected region this year.
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 Mexico Reports Six Confirmed Cases Of Zika Virus In Pregnant WomenThe women are among 80 total Zika cases in Mexico, with more than half of them reported in the southern impoverished state of Chiapas. | Advertisement
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