ZIKA all set to start its Asian journey
ZIKA has made its imprints in Singapore with more than 400 cases being reported in the city and about 350 reported from Thailand out of which two of microcephaly stand confirmed. Out of the 70 countries across the world where mosquito-borne virus has been detected 19 belong to Asia-Pacific region. The Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam and Indonesia have reported maximum number of cases. The experts at WHO are looking for ways to deal with the upcoming situations. WHO is fearing new and unexpected outbreaks of the disease as the carrier mosquito-the Aedes is widely found in Asian subcontinent. In addition, the region sees a huge volume of travellers and is thus more prone to incoming infections. An advisory from US Communicable Disease Centre has been issued telling pregnant women to avoid travel to these countries and more importantly completely avoid Singapore.
The level of immunity among the Asian populations is also under scan. ZIKA is still a mystery for scientists in many respects. The virus is said to have been present in the subcontinent since long but the presence has been confirmed by in some Asian countries once the travellers who returned home confirmed the infection. The virus is known to show only mild effects for general populace but is highly dangerous for pregnant women as it has known relation to birth defects and brain deformation microcephaly. The latest and the most large-scale outbreak has been seen at Brazil lately.
ZIKA virus
The virus first showed up in Africa but is believed to be in circulation in Asian countries since the first half of the 20th century. There are many strains which are in circulation. Singapore outbreak has been caused due to a local strain which is different from the one that was in South America. The risk of microcephaly lies with both the strains. It is however believed that due to long term presence of the virus the adults have developed immunity towards it. However, younger generations may have a hard time coping up with the same. The countries are making concerted efforts to raise the awareness in public and destroy all the breeding grounds of the mosquito. Screening of travellers for the virus is also on the rise. Thailand has set up a regional task-force to test all the pregnant women in the areas where the virus has been detected.
