Zika virus puts Georgia health districts on alert as CDC investigates

As the Centers for Disease Control researches the outbreak of the Zika virus, local health departments are now required to report cases of the virus that causes severe birth defects.

The CDC, in a media teleconference Thursday, reported 31 travel-associated cases in the United States across 11 states and the District of Columbia, although the patients' exact locations were not immediately released.

"We know many people are concerned or scared," said Dr. Anne Schuchat, the principal deputy director for the CDC. "We have no local transmission in the continental United States."

The nearly three dozen U.S. cases were all contracted while those affected were traveling out of the country.

Amy Nichols-Belo, assistant professor of global health studies at Mercer University, said she doesn't think there is cause for panic in the midstate.

"This is not something that we as people living in Middle Georgia need to be terrified of," Nichols-Belo said. "In terms of having it end up here, ... it's not a threat that we have to be worrying about right now."

The virus is only spread by the Aedes mosquito. Of Georgia's 65 mosquito types, only a couple are of that variety, Nichols-Belo said.

Patients may develop fever, a rash, joint pain and red eyes, but most people never have symptoms of the virus, which last about a week.

"It is rare to get seriously ill or die," Schuchat said.

Zika has been around since 1947, but cases exploded in Brazil last spring, she said.

By fall, doctors noticed a Zika connection to some pregnant women giving birth to babies with smaller-than-normal heads, a condition known as microencephaly.

"We understand this condition is devastating for affected families," Schuchat said.

The CDC's disease detectives are working with Brazilian doctors on clinical reviews to research the virus' link to birth defects.

Researchers also are working on tests to diagnose the disease and develop a vaccine to protect women of child-bearing age.

In the interim, pregnant women are urged to postpone travel to Central and South America, the Caribbean, Samoa and Cape Verde.

Infected mosquitoes have been detected in those regions and are expected to eventually spread to the United States.

"This is the latest in a series of mosquito-borne viruses that have expanded their reach in the last 20 years," said Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. "There will likely be others."

What researchers already have learned about viruses such as West Nile, dengue fever and the chickungunya virus, is helping them work on vaccines.

Fauci called on the research community to seek funding for additional studies on Zika.

The CDC does not expect large outbreaks of the virus in the United States where urban centers are not as densely populated as they are in Brazil and typically have air-conditioned buildings, or at least screens on the windows.

Mosquito control will be critical if pockets of cases show up in the United States in the coming months.

"It's easy to say get rid of the mosquitoes; it's a lot harder to do it," Schuchat said. "Current methods have shortcomings, and we'll have to work in the future on better options."

Mosquito repellents and protective clothing can keep people from becoming infected.

"Please take this seriously," Schuchat warned. "We don't know as much as we'd like to about this yet."

Dr. David Harvey, director of the Georgia Department of Public Health's North Central Health District, said he expects the virus will be more challenging to control as temperatures get warmer.

"The only thing we can tell people, particularly pregnant ladies, is to avoid mosquito bites," Harvey said. "Ladies that are pregnant or going to be pregnant need to really take precautions and use mosquito repellent, empty all standing water ... as much as you can, wear long sleeves and slacks. That's really about the most you can do with the current knowledge we have."

Harvey said health departments in Georgia would be required to report all confirmed Zika cases to the Department of Public Health.

Telegraph writer Laura Corley contributed to this report. To contact writer Liz Fabian, call 744-4303 and follow her on Twitter @liz_lines.

This story was originally published January 28, 2016 at 6:54 PM with the headline "Zika virus puts Georgia health districts on alert as CDC investigates ."