Zika virus - you should know that
All content is checked by medical journalists.In 2015, the Zika virus, which is mainly known from Africa and Asia, spread rapidly in South America. The first cases have now also been reported from the USA. The disease is usually harmless - most infected people even develop no symptoms at all. But unborn children of infected mothers could suffer considerable damage: the virus could damage their brains.
What is Zika Virus Infection?
The Zika virus is transmitted by mosquitoes. Typical signs of an infection are a slight fever, lumpy skin rashes, joint pain, and sometimes reddened eyes as a result of conjunctivitis. However, some patients feel very sick and also suffer from headaches and muscle pain, others also from dizziness, stomach pain, nausea with vomiting and diarrhea.
How dangerous is the disease?
Usually, however, the infection is mild in adults and only breaks out in every fourth to fifth infected person. Severe disease courses, as known from the related dengue or yellow fever, are very rare.
However, the virus could possibly lead to nerve damage in the long term: For example, after the outbreak on the islands of French Polynesia, the rate of new cases of the otherwise rare Guillain-Barré syndrome increased twenty-fold. In this disease, the immune system attacks the protective covering of the nerve fibers. As a result, there are significant paralysis and sensitivity disorders, especially of the limbs. The nerve damage can also affect the heart and breathing, putting life in danger.
Where does the disease occur?
So far, the infection has mainly occurred in Africa, Southeast Asia and the Pacific islands. At the beginning of 2015, people were infected for the first time in Brazil, where hundreds of thousands are now infected. From there, the disease quickly spread across the South American continent. The main reason for this is that the infection is new in South America and therefore there is no immunity in the population. In January 2016, the first cases of the disease were registered in the USA, most recently in New York. There have already been cases in Europe, for example in Great Britain, Italy and most recently in Switzerland. A few cases have also been reported in Deutschlad in recent years. As in the rest of other European countries, those affected were only infected while traveling long-distance.
Since the mosquitoes that transmit the disease occur throughout North, Central and South America with the exception of Chile and Canada, the World Health Organization (WHO) assumes that Zika will conquer all of America.
Is it true that the virus puts unborn children at risk?
Experts fear that Zika virus infection in the mother could cause brain damage in the unborn child. In Brazil, where the Zika fever occurred more frequently in 2015, certain malformations of the skull in newborns have suddenly increased - so-called microcephali. The child's head is too small. Brain damage and disabilities are the result. Examinations of the amniotic fluid had shown that the mothers of these children had contracted Zika - mostly without becoming ill themselves. A final proof of the connection is still pending.
Who is at risk?
There is a high probability that the virus infection puts unborn children at risk. Since January 2016, the US health authorities have been advising pregnant women and women who are currently planning to have children not to travel to the following countries for the time being: Brazil, Ecuador, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Colombia, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, Suriname and Venezuela. In the meantime, the German Foreign Office has issued a travel warning for pregnant women.
Can the disease also come to Germany?
Since 2013, ten Zika virus infections have been found at the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine in Hamburg. However, only long-distance travelers were affected.
The viruses are transmitted by mosquito species that do not exist in this country, unlike in the USA, for example. These include the Asian and Egyptian tiger mosquitoes. Domestic mosquitoes do not act as vectors. However, the first specimens of the Asian tiger mosquito have already appeared in Germany. Experts do not consider it to be ruled out that tropical mosquito species will also settle in this country with increasing warming and accordingly tropical diseases will also be feared here at some point.
Another possible transmission route is sexual contact, reports the WHO. At least the virus has also been found in the seminal fluid of sick men. So far, however, only one case has become known in which a patient was probably infected in this way. Transmission via blood cannot be ruled out either.
How can you protect yourself?
There is no effective drug against the virus - you can only fight the symptoms of the disease. There is also no corresponding vaccination yet. The best protection for travelers is therefore not to get stung in the first place. To do this, you should note the following:
- Do not travel to risk areas if you are pregnant.
- Wear light-colored clothing with long sleeves and pants.
- Apply repellants (anti-mosquito repellants) to uncovered areas of skin several times a day.
- Use impregnated mosquito nets over the bed and on the windows.
- Avoid and eliminate water holes where the mosquitoes multiply.
If symptoms of illness such as fever, red eyes, skin rash, nausea, headache and body aches occur after traveling to risk areas, you should consult a doctor.
Sources:
WHO, www.who.int, accessed on January 26, 2016
PAHO Statement on Zika Virus Transmission and Prevention, 01/02/2016
Robert Koch Institute, Epidemiological Bulletin January 18, 2016
Foreign Office, www.auswaertiges-amt.de, accessed on January 26, 2016
