In a statement released by the Federal Ministry of Health in Nigeria, the federal government has issued a travel restriction to Latin America, especially by pregnant women until the Zika Virus outbreak situation improves.
The Minister of Health, Professor Isaac Adewole, yesterday, assured Nigerians that there was no case of the Zika Virus in the country. He however, directed the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control to include Zika Virus diagnosis as part of the ongoing efforts to manage Lassa fever outbreak.
It was reported that the World Health Organization (WHO) raised a global alert because the disease has spread in Brazil and 22 countries in the Americas. The Zika Virus disease is transmitted through the bite of a particular mosquito known as Aedes Aegypti with symptoms such as mild fever, rash, joint pain and red eye.
If the virus gets into a pregnant woman, it can cause birth defects in the unborn baby, and at the moment, there is no cure or vaccine for the virus. At the moment, Nigeria is currently trying to contain Lassa Fever that has claimed over 40 lives across the country, with the latest deaths occurring in Lagos and Ebonyi States.
The Lassa disease is an acute and often fatal viral disease, with fever and usually acquired from infected rats.
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