Several countries in Southeast Asia have already announced the presence of the Zika virus on their territory, which has prompted the American health authorities to advise against all travel to these 11 countries (Brunei, Burma (Myanmar), Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia , Maldives, Philippines, Thailand, East Timor and Vietnam) pregnant women.
An alert that does not seem entirely useless since Thailand has just confirmed the registration of its first two cases of microcephaly due to the Zika virus. Thailand has confirmed around 350 cases of Zika in its territory since the start of the year – including 25 in pregnant women – one of the highest numbers in the region.
For its part, the World Health Organization (WHO) confirms that these two cases of microcephaly are the very first recorded in Southeast Asia.
Zika: what we learned about the virus recently
Zika virus is transmitted by the Aedes mosquito. The first cases were recorded in Brazil last year, but since the epidemic has continued to grow in different territories.
We have learned from recent studies of the virus that:
• The Zika virus remains active for 130 days in semen.
• The virus could be transmitted by tears.
• One third of the population lives in a risk area.
• The virus can duplicate in the vagina.
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