Viruses, Infections & Disease, features and articles | Educational Science

Feb 23, 2016

Sexual Spread of Zika May Be More Common than Thought, CDC Warns

Sexual transmission of the Zika virus from men to women may be a more common mode of the virus's spread than researchers previously thought, officials said today. Authorities at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and several state public health departments are now investigating 14 new reports of...

Feb 25, 2016

Zika Virus Linked to Stillbirth

A woman in Brazil who became infected with the Zika virus gave birth to a stillborn baby, and large parts of the infant's brain were missing, according to a new report. Moreover, the fetus had damage to tissues outside of the central nervous system, the researchers said. For example, the...

Feb 26, 2016

At Least 9 Pregnant Women in US Infected with Zika: CDC

Nine pregnant women in the U.S. have now been confirmed to have had Zika virus infections that they contracted through travel to places where the virus is spreading, U.S. health officials said today. Separate from those cases, researchers have confirmed that six women in the U.S. have contracted the virus...

Mar 4, 2016

Zika Virus: Microcephaly May Be 'Tip of the Iceberg' for Infant Problems

Pregnant women who become infected with Zika virus may be at risk for not only having a child with microcephaly, but also having a fetus with other serious health issues, including problems with the nervous system and even fetal death, according to a new study from Brazil. The study —...

Mar 4, 2016

Zika Virus May Infect, Kill Neural Stem Cells

The Zika virus may infect and kill a type of brain cell that is crucial for brain development, according to a new study done in human cells growing in lab dishes. Although the results don't prove the Zika virus can cause the condition called microcephaly in babies, the findings do...

Mar 9, 2016

Zika Virus Linked with Man's Brain Infection, Coma

An elderly French man who caught the Zika virus while on vacation developed a brain infection that put him in a temporary coma, according to a new report of the case. The 81-year-old man had been healthy before he went on a cruise to the South Pacific — one of...

Mar 10, 2016

New Zika Study Finds Grave Outcomes for Some Pregnant Women

Some pregnant women with Zika virus tend not to fare well, and neither do their fetuses, a new study finds. Zika is a mosquito-borne virus that can also be transmitted through unprotected sexual intercourse. Because of concerns that the disease may increase the risk of microcephaly (small brain size) and...

Mar 10, 2016

Human Trials of Zika Vaccine May Begin This Fall

The first vaccine trials against the Zika virus will likely start this fall, federal health officials announced today (March 10). President Barack Obama has asked Congress to approve $1.8 billion in federal spending to battle Zika virus, but so far, Republicans in Congress have put up a fight, insisting that...

Mar 11, 2016

Risk of Zika Infection Is Low at High Altitudes, CDC Says

Pregnant women may not need to avoid travel to all areas where the Zika virus is spreading — health officials say that, in high elevations, there is a low risk of becoming infected with the virus. The new recommendations, from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, come after the...

Mar 15, 2016

Zika Does Raise Microcephaly Risk, New Study Suggests

A new estimate suggests that one in 100 women who become infected with the Zika virus during the first trimester of pregnancy will give birth to a child with microcephaly, a condition that causes an abnormally small brain and head. The finding comes from researchers' study of a single outbreak...

Mar 16, 2016

Here Are the US Cities at Highest Risk for Zika Transmission

Miami, Houston and Orlando, Florida, are the cities within the continental U.S. that have some of the highest risk of having local transmission of the Zika virus, meaning the virus will spread to people from mosquitoes in the local area, new research suggests. The new analysis combines a host of...

Mar 18, 2016

NY's New Zika Plan Will Include 'Protection Kits' for Pregnant Women

New York state officials have announced a new plan aimed at preventing the transmission of the mosquito-borne Zika virus or limiting an outbreak if the virus were to arrive in the area. Part of the plan involves trapping and testing thousands of mosquitoes in New York for Zika. Specifically, researchers...

Mar 18, 2016

Over 100 Zika Cases Confirmed in US, CDC Says

More than 100 cases of Zika virus have been confirmed in the United States, a new report finds. The 116 residents who have now tested positive for the virus include one infant who was born with severe microcephaly, according to the report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...

Mar 24, 2016

Zika Virus Was in Brazil a Year Before It Was Detected

The Zika virus was likely circulating in Brazil for more than a year before it was detected, according to a new genetic analysis of a small number of Zika samples from Brazil. Researchers also found that the Brazilian outbreak likely started from a single introduction of the virus into the...

Mar 25, 2016

After Zika Infection, People Should Wait Months to Conceive Children, CDC Says

People who have been infected with Zika virus should wait at least several months before they attempt to conceive a child, according to new recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Women who are diagnosed with Zika or who experience symptoms of the disease after possible exposure to...