Close X
Monday, November 11, 2024
ADVT 
Health

CDC Expands Tropical Virus Alert; 22 Destinations On List

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 22 Jan, 2016 11:51 AM
    Health authorities have added eight tropical destinations to a travel alert about an illness linked with a severe birth defect and spread by mosquitoes.
     
    The updated alert issued Friday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention brings the total to 22 destinations, most in Latin America and the Caribbean, where there have been outbreaks of the Zika virus.
     
    The new locations are Barbados, Bolivia, Ecuador, Guadeloupe, Saint Martin and Guyana; Cape Verde, off the coast of western Africa; and Samoa in the South Pacific.
     
    Last week's alert included Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, Suriname and Venezuela.
     
    The CDC says pregnant women should consider postponing trips to these destinations because the virus has been linked with microcephaly. Affected newborns have unusually small heads and abnormal brain development.
     
    All travellers to these areas are advised to take precautions, including using repellent and wearing long sleeves and long pants, to avoid mosquito bites.
     
    Zika illness can cause fever, rash and joint pain but most people infected by mosquito bites don't show symptoms. There's no specific treatment; infected people aren't contagious.
     
    The CDC says people who do develop symptoms should tell their doctors where and when they travelled.

    MORE Health ARTICLES

    Unhealthy Diets In Childhood Affect Heart Later

    Unhealthy Diets In Childhood Affect Heart Later
    Keep an eye on what your child is eating for the childhood diet will have a long-term effect on his/her health later, warns new research.

    Unhealthy Diets In Childhood Affect Heart Later

    Fresh Blood No Better For Transfusions, Canadian-led Study Shows

    Fresh Blood No Better For Transfusions, Canadian-led Study Shows
    TORONTO — Freshly donated blood is not better than older blood when it is transfused into severely ill patients, a new Canadian-led study reports.

    Fresh Blood No Better For Transfusions, Canadian-led Study Shows

    Breast Biopsy Accuracy Varies, Especially With Pre-cancer Conditions, Experimental Study Says

    Breast Biopsy Accuracy Varies, Especially With Pre-cancer Conditions, Experimental Study Says
    CHICAGO — Here's another reason for getting a second medical opinion: Biopsy specialists frequently misdiagnose breast tissue, potentially leading to too-aggressive treatment for some women and under-treatment for others, a study suggests.

    Breast Biopsy Accuracy Varies, Especially With Pre-cancer Conditions, Experimental Study Says

    High-energy Breakfast Good For Diabetics

    High-energy Breakfast Good For Diabetics
    A high-energy breakfast and modest dinner can control dangerous blood sugar spikes all day, says a study. More than 382 million people in the world suffer from diabetes, predominantly type-2 diabetes.

    High-energy Breakfast Good For Diabetics

    Not Only What You Eat, When You Eat Also Impacts Heart

    A team of Indian-American researchers has found that not just what you eat but when you do so is equally important in order to protect your heart from early ageing.

    Not Only What You Eat, When You Eat Also Impacts Heart

    Can The World Go Tobacco-Free By 2040?

    Can The World Go Tobacco-Free By 2040?
    Public health researchers have called for the sale of tobacco to be phased out by 2040, showing that with sufficient political support, a tobacco-free world could be possible in less than three decades.

    Can The World Go Tobacco-Free By 2040?