Zika virus cases rise in Pune! Here's all you need to know about its symptoms
Zika virus is transmitted through the bite of an infected Aedes mosquito, which is also known to transmit dengue and chikungunya.
Cases of Zika virus are being detected in Pune, Maharashtra. There have been at least 66 cases of Zika virus infection in the city in the last two months. While four patients have died, the cause isn't the infection itself, a senior health official told PTI. The virus is transmitted through the bite of an infected Aedes mosquito, which is also known to transmit dengue and chikungunya infections. They usually bite their victims during the day.
"The 66 cases include four deaths, but these deaths were not due to Zika but comorbidities the patients were suffering from… such as cardiac issues, liver ailments, old age. Their reports came positive for the virus from the NIV (National Institute of Virology) after death," a health department official said.
What is Zika virus?
A mosquito-borne virus, it was first identified in Uganda in 1947 in a Rhesus macaque monkey followed by evidence of infection and disease in humans in other African countries in the 1950s. It has spread all through the world and is a recurring infection. Zika virus in pregnant women may cause microcephaly (a condition in which the head is significantly smaller due to abnormal brain development) in the foetus. "The PMC health department is conducting surveillance. As a precautionary measure, it is taking measures such as fumigation to curb the breeding of mosquitoes," the statement added.
What are the symptoms of Zika virus?
The World Health Organisation has listed the symptoms for the Zika virus. Most people infected with the virus do not develop any symptoms. Among those who do, they typically start being evident 3 to 14 days after the infection. It can present itself as a rash, fever, conjunctivitis, muscle and joint pain, malaise and headache. These symptoms usually last for around two to seven days. The diagnosis of the Zika virus requires laboratory confirmation.
With inputs from PTI