East Texas Heath Officials Address Zika Virus

TYLER — UT Health Northeast held a news conference to address the concerns of the mosquito borne Zika Virus in East Texas. “We first were alerted to a documented case in Harris County about the middle part of January so this is all a new occurrences” George Roberts, Chief Executive Officer of Northeast Public Health District of Tyler, said. According to KETK, this week CDC confirmed the first sexually transmitted case of Zika, from a patient who sex with someone who returned from Venezula.

“One would suspect that it’s probably through semen and a mucosal membrane there can be blood spread or tears that sort of thing,” Jeffrey Levin, MD at UT Health Northeast, said. Zika has been linked to birth defects in pregnant women who travel to countries where the virus is ongoing. “We just know that there’s been the cause and effect between the Zika Virus and and pregnant women….babies being born with smaller head in Brazil. We are not really sure cause that, we just know the cause and effect,” Roberts, said.

Symptoms of Zika include fever, rash, and joint pain, there are no vaccines for the virus. Tips for protecting yourself include wearing long sleeves, and mosquito repellent.