Three children born in the United States with birth defects due to the Zika virus, reported the US health authorities. These babies, whose mothers had been infected with the virus, were born with microcephaly and of poor eye development.
The U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which now maintains a Zika virus pregnancy registry, also announced that the fetuses of 3 women who suffered a miscarriage were also showing signs of infection with the virus.
No locally transmitted case of Zika yet
So far, around 200 women living on the North American continent have contracted the Zika virus. The majority of pregnant women followed by the CDC contracted the virus either while traveling to a country infected with the virus or by having sex with a partner who has traveled to one of these countries. But so far, authorities say no cases have been transmitted locally.
A few days ago, the American health authorities recalled that it is during the first trimester of pregnancy that the risk is highest for the fetus. The CDC is based on a report from Colombian authorities which shows that of the 12,000 pregnant women infected with the virus, those who caught Zika during the 3rd trimester of pregnancy have given birth to healthy children.
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Our special report on the Zika virus
