OLEAN — If mosquitoes capable of carrying the Zika virus find their way to the area, the Cattaraugus County Health Department’s surveillance and control program could help nip them in the bud.
County Public Health Director Dr. Kevin Watkins updated the Cattaraugus County Board of Health on Wednesday on state efforts to detect the Zika virus in pregnant women who traveled to areas of South America, the Caribbean and Mexico where the virus is active. Women who plan to become pregnant should also avoid the areas, health experts have said.
Pregnant women who have visited areas where the Zika virus is active are being advised by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the New York State Department of Health to see their doctor about being tested. The physician will consult with local health department officials for authorization. The state will then send the blood to the Wadsworth Laboratory in Albany, where results would be available in 24 to 72 hours, Watkins said.
The public health director also noted that men who have visited countries where the Zika virus is active should not have sex with pregnant women for at least 28 days or, if they do, use a latex condom. There have been cases where Zika has been transmitted by sperm, Watkins said.
The virus, which is transmitted by a particular species of mosquitoes, has recently coincided with an alarming spike in the number of children born with brain abnormalities.
Concerns sparked by the sharp rise in clusters of babies in Brazil born with small heads linked to mothers with the virus prompted the World Health Organization last week to declare Zika a global health emergency.
The species of mosquito that can transmit Zika is found in several counties in the state’s southeast corner, including Long Island, and in New York City.
Watkins gave an example of how a Zika-bearing mosquito could hitchhike in a car to Western New York. Or, a mosquito could bite an infected person and pick up the Zika virus, which it could then transmit to an uninfected person.
The symptoms of Zika, which was first isolated in monkeys in 1947 in Uganda, include acute fever, rash, joint and muscle pain, and conjunctivitis.
Adult cases of Zika virus can lead to Guillain Barre syndrome, a disease that can cause temporary paralysis, Watkins said. Four out of five people who contract the Zika virus have no symptoms.
“Do we have this particular mosquito?” asked Dr. Joseph Bohan, president of the health board.
“We’re not seeing it in Western New York,” Watkins replied. “Our concern is that these mosquitoes can travel.”
Bohan added: “I’m glad we have the monitoring program set up.”
Environmental Health Director Eric Wohlers said no changes in the mosquito surveillance program are planned for this summer.
Two interns trap and identify mosquito species, which are sent to Albany to determine whether they are carrying any diseases, such as West Nile virus.
“This is just a different virus they’ll be testing for,” Wohlers said.
(Contact reporter Rick Miller at rmiller@oleantimesherald.com. Follow him on Twitter, @RMillerOTH)
