Zika infections double in
Vietnam as cases increase in south
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[November 02, 2016]
HANOI (Reuters) - The number of confirmed Zika cases in Vietnam
has more than doubled over the past three days to 23, with a dozen of
the new infections recorded in the commercial hub of Ho Chi Minh City,
the health ministry said on Wednesday.
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The mosquito-borne virus has been spreading in Southeast Asia after
outbreaks in the Americas. Thailand reported the region's first
confirmed case of microcephaly, a birth defect marked by small head
size, linked to Zika in late September.
On Sunday, Vietnam's health ministry reported its first microcephaly
case that it said was likely linked to Zika. nL4N1D002L]
The ministry said 14 more cases of Zika were reported since Sunday,
most in the south of the country. Seventeen of Vietnam's 23 cases
have been in the south's Ho Chi Minh City, the country's biggest
city.
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Health officials were not immediately available for comment on the
surge in cases.
Vietnam last month raised the threat level for Zika and stepped up
monitoring of pregnant women.
Zika infections in pregnant women have been shown to cause
microcephaly - a severe birth defect in which the head and brain are
undersized - as well as other brain abnormalities.
The connection between Zika and microcephaly first came to light
last year in Brazil, which has since confirmed more than 1,900 cases
of microcephaly.
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In adults, Zika infections have also been linked to a rare
neurological syndrome known as Guillain-Barre, as well as other
neurological disorders.
There is no vaccine or treatment for Zika, which is a close cousin
of dengue and chikungunya and causes mild fever, rash and red eyes.
An estimated 80 percent of people infected have no symptoms, making
it difficult for pregnant women to know whether they have been
infected.
(Reporting by My Pham; Editing by Martin Petty, Robert Birsel)
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