Zika virus can also be transmitted through sex

The Zika virus, which also occurs in Thailand, appears to be sexually transmitted. In Dallas (Texas), someone contracted the Zika virus through sexual contact with an infected person who had recently been to Venezuela, NOS writes.

The mosquito that spreads the virus has not yet been found in Texas. For privacy reasons, nothing has been disclosed about the infected. If it concerns a pregnant woman, there is a risk of abnormalities in the baby.

So far, only two cases have been reported in which the Zika virus was transmitted through sexual contact. In 2013, an anonymous man from Tahiti had the virus in his semen. Five years earlier, a biologist from Colorado had returned from Senegal with Zika. He would have passed the virus on to his wife.

In England, there was already a warning about the possible sexual transmission of the virus. British men who have been to a country where the Zika virus is prevalent are advised to use condoms for a month when they return home.

The virus is currently spreading rapidly throughout Latin America. A reason for the World Health Organization (WHO) to declare an international state of emergency last Monday.

Zika virus in Thailand

Thailand currently has a concrete case of an infection. Bhumibol Adulyadej Hospital has announced that it has treated a patient who was admitted on January 24 with symptoms of Zika. He says he has not been abroad in risk areas.

The Thai Ministry of Health to screen pregnant women who show symptoms of Zika. Their babies can be born with microcephaly, a reduced skull size, and incomplete brain development. The symptoms of Zika are similar to those of dengue fever. Only a blood test can clarify this.