Zika Confirmed Riverside Co California ex-Dominican Republic

[niman]

The 50-year-old man tested positive for the primarily mosquito-borne virus after returning in mid-June from visiting the Dominican Republic, where the insects are known to carry Zika, according to Riverside County Department of Public Health spokesman Jose Arballo Jr.

http://www.pe.com/articles/county-807479-riverside-zika.html

 

[niman]

ZIKA: First case confirmed in southwest Riverside County

County public health officials believe a southwest Riverside County man got the virus while visiting the Caribbean.

 

By SUZANNE HURT / STAFF WRITER

Published: July 5, 2016 Updated: July 6, 2016 7:34 a.m.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

, JAMES GATHANY/CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION

Riverside County public health officials on Tuesday, July 5, reported a local resident is sick with the Zika virus after returning from the Caribbean – becoming the county’s first known case of the disease as the number of cases in the U.S. and U.S. territories, including in pregnant women, continues to grow.

The 50-year-old man tested positive for the primarily mosquito-borne virus after returning in mid-June from visiting the Dominican Republic, where the insects are known to carry Zika, according to Riverside County Department of Public Health spokesman Jose Arballo Jr.

Health officials believe the man, who lives in southwest Riverside County, became infected during his travel outside the United States. The state public health department confirmed the infection last week.

The man was not hospitalized and is expected to make a full recovery.

“How long it takes you to recover can vary quite a bit from person to person,” Arballo said.

Zika infection in pregnant women can cause severe fetal brain defects including microcephaly, and is believed to sometimes trigger Guillain-Barré syndrome, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The city the Riverside County man lives in is not being disclosed to protect the man’s confidentiality. Health officials don’t know of any of his family members being sick, Arballo said.

Riverside County joins four other Southern California counties with confirmed Zika cases. As of July 1, Los Angeles County reported 19 cases, San Diego County had 16, Orange County had 6 and San Bernardino County had 3, according to the California Department of Public Health’s website.

Imperial and Ventura counties remain Southern California’s only counties without confirmed Zika cases. Imperial County had no cases as of Tuesday, July 5, said health department spokeswoman Maria Peinado.

On March 25, California public health director Dr. Karen Smith announced the first confirmed case of Zika virus acquired in California after a woman got sick following sex with an infected man who had traveled.

However, the state has revised its report, in line with the CDC, to say the confirmed cases all involve people exposed to Zika through travel to an affected area or contact with a traveler.

The number of Zika cases reported to the CDC’s arboNETcq in the U.S. and Washington, D.C., grew from 820 as of June 22 to 935 by June 29, and in U.S. territories from 1,860 June 22 to 2,026 by June 29.

In the U.S., one case was acquired in a lab and the rest were travel-related, with 13 spread through sex. In U.S. territories, all but six cases were locally acquired, according to the CDC.

The number of pregnant women who have tested positive for Zika in the U.S. and Washington, D.C., grew from 265 as of June 16 to 287 by June 23, and from 216 in U.S. territories to 250.

Contact the writer: 951-368-9444 or [email protected]

Edited July 6, 2016 by niman

[niman]

Map Update

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