The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notified the Ohio Department of Health late Tuesday afternoon of a second Ohio case of Zika virus in a returning traveler from Haiti, a 21-year-old Stark County man. The two cases are not linked.
“Given the number of travelers between Ohio and Zika virus-affected countries, it would not be a surprise to see more cases,” said ODH Medical Director Dr. Mary DiOrio.
“There is no vaccine available for Zika virus so it’s important for Ohioans traveling to affected areas to take steps to prevent mosquito bites.
Previous story — Ohio reports first Zika virus case in returning traveler
COLUMBUS — The Ohio Department of Health officials reported Tuesday that Ohio’s first case of the Zika virus has been confirmed in a returning traveler from Haiti, a 30-year-old Cuyahoga County woman in the city of Cleveland.
This 2006 photo provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows a female Aedes aegypti mosquito in the process of acquiring a blood meal from a human host. The Zika virus is spread through mosquito bites from Aedes aegypti. Officials confirmed Tuesday the first case of the virus in Ohio. (James Gathany/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention via AP)
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Prior to Ohio’s first case, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was reporting 35 cases of Zika virus in 12 states and the District of Columbia.
Zika virus is primarily transmitted through a mosquito bite, and there is no indication that it can spread from person to person through casual contact. CDC has confirmed a U.S. case of Zika virus infection in a non-traveler after the person’s sexual partner returned from an affected country and developed symptoms.
Planning is underway for a Zika virus tabletop exercise to ensure Ohio’s preparedness at the local and state levels prior to the 2016 mosquito season that runs from May to October.
Of people infected with the Zika virus, 80 percent do not have any symptoms. When symptoms occur, they are often mild, lasting from several days to a week, and include fever, rash, joint and muscle pain, conjunctivitis (red eyes), and headache.
Severe disease requiring hospitalization is uncommon. Due to the possible association between Zika virus infections in pregnant women and certain birth defects, CDC recommends that pregnant women and women trying to get pregnant consider postponing travel to areas with Zika virus transmission.
“There is no vaccine available for Zika virus, so it’s important for Ohioans traveling to affected areas to take steps to prevent mosquito bites,” said Dr. Mary DiOrio, medical director of the Ohio Department of Health. “There have been no reported cases of Zika virus disease transmission through mosquito bites anywhere in the continental U.S.”
To prevent potential transmission through sexual contact, CDC recommends men with a pregnant sex partner abstain from sexual activity or consistently and correctly use condoms during sex for the duration of the pregnancy. CDC also recommends that pregnant women without symptoms of Zika virus disease be offered testing 2 to 12 weeks after returning from areas with ongoing Zika virus transmission.
The CDC’s travel alert for Zika virus transmission includes the following regions and countries: the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, U.S. territories; American Samoa; Barbados; Bolivia; Brazil; Cape Verde; Colombia; Costa Rica; Curacao; Dominican Republic; Ecuador; El Salvador; French Guiana; Guadeloupe; Guatemala; Guyana; Haiti; Honduras; Jamaica; Martinique; Mexico; Nicaragua; Panama; Paraguay; Saint Martin; Samoa; Suriname; Tonga; and Venezuela.
Zika virus disease has historically occurred in Africa, Southeast Asia and islands in the Pacific Ocean.
For more information about the Zika virus, visit www.odh.ohio.gov/zika.