Florida health officials are reporting the state’s first sexually transmitted case of Zika in 2017. According to a Florida Department of Health statement, the Pinellas County resident’s partner showed symptoms of the mosquito-borne virus after a recent trip to Cuba. Officials said both patients tested positive for Zika.
Florida added three new “travel related” Zika cases during the past week, bringing to 116 the number of reported cases of the mosquito-borne virus this year, according to numbers posted Monday on the state Department of Health website.
Florida’s governor says no Zika transmission zones have been identified in the state so far this year. But Gov. Rick Scott also warns that people visiting and living in Florida must help prevent another outbreak of the virus by wearing mosquito repellent and draining containers that collect rainwater.
Seven babies have been born in Florida with birth defects linked to the Zika virus. The Orlando Sentinel reports that State Surgeon General Dr. Celeste Philip told Orlando-area officials Tuesday that seven babies with Zika-related neurological conditions have been born in Florida since June 2016. Philip did not say where the babies lived or whether their mothers contracted Zika in Florida or while traveling. She said the state hired additional staff to help their families navigate their health care options.…
Zika began spreading in Florida mosquitoes about three months before infections showed up in the Miami area last summer, and the virus likely was carried in by travelers from the Caribbean, new research suggests. Mosquitoes there started picking up the virus from infected travelers as early as March last year, according to scientists who examined genetic information from samples from about 30 people with Zika as well as from mosquitoes. It wasn’t until July that Florida health officials said they…
As we celebrated Mother’s Day with our families this weekend, I could not help but think of all the moms in the U.S., and all over the world, who have been affected by Zika in the last year. As a father of six, I know that all children bring challenges. But a child born with microcephaly will present his or her parents with unique struggles. As we enter into the warm summer months, the threat of another outbreak is looming. That…
Zika season is all but upon us, and to that end Gov. Rick Scott visited Jacksonville Tuesday to discuss Florida’s ongoing struggles with Zika. Scott found himself messaging heavily around Zika in 2016, frustrated with President Barack Obama not doing as much as he could to fund Zika-related costs. In 2017, Scott has an ally in the White House — which, combined with a dry season so far and ample lead time, is helping Florida to get ahead of the virus early in the season.…