US health officials perplexed by ‘unique’ Zika case

US health officials perplexed by ‘unique’ Zika case
On a month-long probe into a ‘unique’ Zika case in Utah,US health officials say they're are still unable to identify how the person was infected.

It ‘remains unclear’ how the ‘unique’ case was infected, according to a report released on Tuesday by the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). But the report noted that the person reported hugging and kissing the deceased patient, suggesting the possibility that the infection might be caused by contact with body fluids. ‘Although it is not certain that these types of close contact were the source of transmission, family contacts should be aware that blood and body fluids of severely ill patients might be infectious,’ the officials said in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. ‘This investigation will remain active, and we will continue working to learn more about Zika virus and how it may be spread,’ Dagmar Vitek, medical director from the Salt Lake county Health Department, said. ‘People should continue to take the appropriate steps to prevent Zika virus infection — especially pregnant women, and health care workers who are caring for severely ill patients with the disease,’ Vitek said. More than 2,900 cases of Zika have been identified in the US and Hawaii and the Utah patient is the only case that has an unknown mode of transmission. Know more about how the zika virus spreads.

Source: IANS

Image source: Shutterstock

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