Zika Virus Update: El Salvador Encourages Latina Women to Delay Pregnancy for Two Years

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Public health officials in El Salvador have encouraged women to delay pregnancy for the next two years to avoid the risk of passing on the Zika virus to their children. The virus is linked to a rare brain defect in babies.

During an anti-mosquito campaign on Thursday, Deputy Health Minister Eduardo Espinoza suggested to all women of fertile age to take precaution and carefully plan their pregnancies in the next two years to avoid passing on the Zika virus to their children, Reuters reported.

The rise of microcephaly cases in Brazil and its neighbouring countries has been closely linked to the virus. Reportedly, when pregnant women get bitten by a mosquito carrying the virus, the newborn might suffer a neurological defect where the brains do not develop properly. The babies may manifest an unusually small heads.

The public advisory was made upon knowing that there are already 5,397 recorded cases of the Zika virus in El Salvador in 2015 up until the first few days of this year. More so, there are already 96 pregnant women who are suspected to have contracted the virus. None of them, so far, have delivered a newborn with microcephaly.

Although the research is still underway, significant evidence is linked to the increased number of microcephaly cases to the virus.

There is no known cure or vaccine for Zika.

Meanwhile, Sky News reported that already pregnant women should stay covered in outdoors. More so, travel warnings were also placed to a number of places in Central America as the plague continues. The 14 affected nations as identified by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are as follows: Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Suriname, Venezuela and Puerto Rico.

Women are advised to postpone trips to these places.

Reuters previously reported the mosquito that carries the Zika virus is also responsible for spreading dengue and chikungunya. In an effort to contain the disease, a British Biotech company has created genetically-modified mosquitoes. The male mosquitoes are modified so their offspring dies before reaching adulthood.

The method has been proven effective in Piracicaba as the larvae population dropped by 82 percent. Around 25 million of the modified insects were released between April and November. It effectively reduced the dengue cases in the area at the duration of the study.

The Zika virus remained unknown in America until last year. The virus was first discovered in Africa in 1947. Health experts are still baffled what caused the rapid spread.

To know more about Zika virus, here's a video from The Young Turks: