By Chioma Umeha
US health authorities on Friday urged people to use condoms
or refrain from sex if they live in or have traveled to areas where the Zika
virus is circulating.
The new interim guidelines from the US Centers from Disease
Control are aimed at pregnant women and their partners, and those of
childbearing age who are concerned about Zika, a primarily mosquito-borne virus
which has been linked to birth defects.
Earlier this week, US health officials confirmed the first
case of sexually-transmitted Zika, involving a person who had traveled to
Venezuela and infected a sexual partner in Texas upon return.
“Men with a pregnant sex partner who reside in or have
traveled to an area of active Zika virus transmission and their pregnant sex
partners should consistently and correctly use condoms during sex (vaginal,
anal, or oral) or abstain from sexual activity for the duration of the
pregnancy,” said the CDC.
“Consistent and correct use of latex condoms reduces the
risk of sexual transmission of many infections, including those caused by other
viruses.”
The CDC urged couples in which a partner is not pregnant to
“consider using condoms consistently and correctly during sex or abstaining
from sexual activity.”
“The science is not clear on how long the risk should be
avoided,” added the CDC statement.
“Research is now underway to answer this question as soon as
possible. If you are trying to get pregnant, you may consider testing in
discussion with your health care provider.”
Meanwhile in Brazil, the nation’s top research institute
said that Zika has been detected in urine and saliva, but added that there was
no proof the virus could be transmitted through those fluids.
Thousands of children in Brazil have been born with shrunken
heads in the past year — a birth defect that some research suggests could
result from Zika infection.
