OTTAWA — The country's chief public health officer says the threat to Canada from the mosquito-borne Zika virus is, in his words, "very, very low."
Dr. Gregory Taylor says there have been four recent cases in Canada — two in British Columbia, one in Alberta and a newly disclosed case in Quebec, all of them involving people who recently travelled to affected areas.
Taylor says his agency is monitoring the situation as the virus spreads, particularly in South America.
He says the mosquito that carries the virus is not established in Canada and is not adapted to the country's climate.
The Zika virus has been linked to cases of microcephaly, or abnormally small heads in newborns.
Taylor says women who are pregnant or planning to become pregnant, consult a health-care practitioner before travelling to an affected region.
SPREAD OF VIRUS IN CANADA REMOTE, SAYS FEDERAL HEALTH MINISTER PHILPOTT AS BLOOD DONATIONS LIMITED
OTTAWA — Federal Health Minister Jane Philpott is trying to calm fears about the outbreak of the Zika virus after three cases of the illness were confirmed in Canada.
Philpott says Canadians are being advised to avoid travel to countries affected by the virus, which can cause neurological problems and birth defects.
But the minister notes that the Canadian cases all involve patients who recently travelled in affected areas, and says the breed of mosquitoes known to spread the virus is not found in Canada.
Canada is expected to attend an emergency meeting hosted by the United Nations on Monday where health officials hope to come up with a plan to stop the spread of the virus.
In the meantime, Canadian Blood Services will stop accepting blood donations from people returning from countries hit by the outbreak.
Philpott says it's still unclear whether the virus has actually been spread through blood products, but promises more information on that likelihood will be made public once it's available.
"At this point I don't know that we're in a position to validate those concerns," Philpott said Thursday outside the House of Commons.
"I would stay tuned and I'll give further information as soon as I have it."
The Public Health Agency of Canada is constantly monitoring the situation and front-line health workers are being told to be on the lookout for people who may exhibit symptoms, said Philpott.
"We're in communication with all stakeholders including health care providers to make sure that people are aware of the appropriate symptoms that might put in mind a possible diagnosis of Zika virus and that people are tested appropriately for that," said the minister.
A decision on which countries will be linked to the ban on blood donations is expected in the next few days.
The World Health Organization says the virus is "spreading explosively."
Air Canada says it plans to give refunds or allow passengers to change flights over concerns about the disease. As well, Air Transat says pregnant women with a medical note can reschedule or change destinations if they were booked to fly to countries that have been listed as having the virus.
5 THINGS ABOUT ZIKA VIRUS
The World Health Organization will hold an emergency meeting of independent experts Monday to decide if the Zika virus outbreak should be declared an international health emergency. Here are five things you should know about the virus:
WHAT IT IS: The Zika virus, named after a forest in Uganda where it was first identified in rhesus monkeys in 1947, is transmitted by two types of the day-biting Aedes mosquito, A. aegypti and A. albopictus.
WHERE IT'S FOUND: Cases of Zika have been reported in more than 20 countries in South and Central America and the Caribbean, as well as parts of Mexico, following its spread from Africa to Asia and the Pacific Islands. Brazil has been particularly hard hit. As many as 1.5 million Brazilians may have been infected with the Zika virus since its arrival in the country last spring.
WHO'S AT RISK: Most people infected by Zika virus do not get sick. Those who develop symptoms, including fever, rash, joint pain and red eyes, recover within about a week. However, Zika virus has been linked to microcephaly in infants born to women infected while pregnant. Newborns with the birth defect have small heads and underdeveloped brains.
HOW IT'S TREATED: There is no effective antiviral drug to treat Zika infection and a vaccine to prevent the disease is estimated to take years to develop.
HOW TO AVOID IT: The Public Health Agency of Canada is advising pregnant women and those who plan to get pregnant to consider postponing travel to Zika-affected countries or regions unless absolutely necessary. If travel cannot be postponed, then strict mosquito-bite prevention measures should be followed, including wearing clothes that fully cover exposed skin and applying a mosquito repellent like DEET.
ZIKA VIRUS THREAT TO INDIA REAL; CURB TRAVEL TO AMERICAS: EXPERTS
The mosquito-borne Zika virus - a pathogen which was virtually unheard of till some days ago - is spreading so fast that it can infect nearly four million people in the Americas in next 12 months if not tackled well within time and the threat has now reached India.
In May 2015, Brazil reported its first case of Zika virus disease. Since then, the disease has spread within Brazil and to 22 other countries and territories in the Americas.
Pregnant women are at greater risk. According to health authorities, the virus may trigger a brain abnormality called microcephaly (abnormal smallness of the head) in new-born babies though the link is yet to be established.
Zika virus is transmitted by the bite of Aedes species mosquito which breeds in water-holding containers. Like dengue, it is a day-biting mosquito.
“India has to be on the alert because international travel from central and South America, Africa and the Caribbean Islands can potentially carry the virus into our country,” said Dr Monica Mahajan, senior consultant (internal medicine) at Max Super Specialty Hospital in the capital.
The union health ministry said on Friday that it is making sure that India is well prepared against cases of Zika virus that has already caused much damage in the Americas.
In its latest advisory, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) has also cautioned pregnant women to avoid travelling to countries at risk of Zika virus transmission.
However, most cases are mild and only one in five humans bitten by the mosquito will develop the disease. Symptoms are similar to chikungunya and dengue but fortunately, complications are rare.
“The recent concern is two-fold: There have been cases reported in more nations compared to outbreaks prior to 2015. Secondly, there is concern about possible birth defects in case a pregnant lady gets infected,” Mahajan told IANS.
According to her, past experience with dengue epidemic shows that mosquito breeding in India is rampant and difficult to control.
“So any mosquito-borne illness tends to spread easily owing to overcrowding and hygiene issues. So till such time that diagnostic facilities are available, best option is mosquito control measures to prevent mosquito breeding,” she added.
A patient suffering from fever with rash should be protected from further mosquito bites during the first few days of illness so that he does not pass the virus into more mosquitoes and cause local transmission of disease.
“Zika virus is a vector-borne disease. Currently, it may not be here in India, but if a person lands in India with the active infection and gets bitten by Aedes mosquito and that mosquito bites other peoples this can be spread in India as well,” Dr J.S. Bhasin, senior consultant and HOD (peadiatric and neonatology department) at BLK Super Specialty Hospital in Delhi.
According to Margaret Chan, director general of the World Health Organization (WHO), "the level of alarm is extremely high, as is the level of uncertainty. Questions abound. We need to get some answers quickly."
WHO is set to convene an international health regulations emergency committee on Zika virus on February 1 in Geneva to ascertain whether the outbreak constitutes a public health emergency of international concern.
“Arrival of the virus in some countries of the Americas, notably Brazil, has been associated with a steep increase in the birth of babies with abnormally small heads and in cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome, a poorly understood condition in which the immune system attacks the nervous system, sometimes resulting in paralysis,” a WHO statement read.
The WHO was criticised last year for reacting slowly to Ebola epidemic that killed over 10,000 people.
“A causal relationship between Zika virus infection and birth defects and neurological syndromes has not been established, but is strongly suspected,” the WHO statement added.
The virus was first isolated in 1947 from a rhesus macaque monkey from Zika forest in Uganda.
