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

Mar 29, 2016

Reported Cases of Zika Virus Worldwide (Infographic)

Map showing countries that have reported virus transmission, cases of the virus, or historical cases prior to 2015. (Image credit: by Karl Tate, Infographics artist) ...

Mar 29, 2016

Zika Misperceptions: Many in US Unaware of Key Facts

Many people in the U.S. are not aware of key facts about the Zika virus, according to the results of a new poll. Researchers found that, for example, in households that included a woman who was either pregnant or considering getting pregnant in the next year, 1 in 4 people...

Mar 31, 2016

Zika Revealed: Here's What a Brain-Cell-Killing Virus Looks Like

The destructive Zika virus has been visualized for the first time, shedding light on similarities and differences between this and related viruses, according to a new study. The new findings may be helpful in developing effective antiviral treatments and vaccines against the Zika virus, the researchers said. The structure of...

Apr 1, 2016

Zika Virus: Symptoms, Risk, Treatment & Prevention

The Zika virus is spread by bites of infected mosquitoes in the Aedes genus. The virus was first identified in the Zika Valley, in central Africa, in 1947, according to the Mayo Clinic. Over the years, it spread to southeastern and southern Asia, Pacific islands and the Americas. While it...

Apr 1, 2016

Protecting Pregnant Women in the US from Zika Is a Top Priority, Officials Say

Outbreaks of the Zika virus are likely to occur in the United States; so to prepare, health officials are developing plans to combat Zika that focus on protecting pregnant women from the virus. More than 300 local, state and federal officials met today (April 1) to discuss these plans at...

Apr 11, 2016

Zika Virus Linked with Another Brain Disease: What's ADEM?

Some people infected with the Zika virus may develop a rare neurological disorder that is similar to multiple sclerosis, a new study from Brazil suggests. The study reports two cases of people who were infected with the Zika virus and who later developed a condition called acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM)....

Apr 13, 2016

Zika Virus Does Cause Microcephaly, Report Confirms

The Zika virus can cause microcephaly — a condition in which an infant has an abnormally small brain and head — when the infant's mother is infected during pregnancy, according to a new report, published today (April 13) in the New England Journal of Medicine. The report from researchers at...

Jun 22, 2016

Abortion Requests Double After Zika Warnings in Brazil

Requests for abortions in some Latin American countries have doubled since health officials began issuing warnings about the link between Zika virus and birth defects, according to a new report. The report authors analyzed information from a nonprofit organization called Women on Web, which provides access to abortion medications (using...

Jul 5, 2016

US Olympic Team Will Be Studied for Zika

When the U.S. Olympic team heads to Brazil in the coming weeks for the start of the Summer Games, some athletes will be studied to see if they become infected with the Zika virus. The government-funded study will involve at least 1,000 members of the U.S. Olympic team, including athletes,...

Jul 13, 2016

Why the Olympics Actually Won't Cause Zika to Spread Everywhere

With the 2016 Olympic Games in Brazil less than a month away, concerns are mounting that the international event may spread the Zika virus to more countries around the world. Indeed, global travel has been contributing to the spread of virus in the Western Hemisphere since at least 2015, according...

Jul 14, 2016

Zika Outbreak Could Be Over in 3 Years, Study Predicts

The current Zika outbreak taking place in much of South and Central America will be largely over in three years' time, a new study predicts. That's because once someone is infected with Zika, the individual appears to become immune to the virus, meaning he or she can't get sick a...

Jul 15, 2016

Man Gets Zika from Sex with Female Partner, in First

A woman in New York City who was infected with Zika passed the virus to her male partner during sex, marking the first report of female-to-male sexual transmission of this virus. Previously, all reports of sexual transmission of the Zika virus have been cases of men passing it to their...

Jul 18, 2016

Zika Virus Mystery: New Utah Case Stumps Researchers

In a puzzling case, a person in Utah became infected with the Zika virus, but health officials can't figure out how the person contracted it. The infected person was a caregiver for an elderly man who had Zika. But the case is mysterious: As far as health officials can tell,...

Jul 20, 2016

Was Zika Contracted in Florida? How the Virus Could Spread Locally

Health officials in Florida are investigating a case of Zika that may have been acquired locally rather than in another country. But if the virus is spreading in Florida, how did it get there? For someone to acquire Zika in Florida, a person infected with Zika would have to spread...

Jul 29, 2016

4 Florida Zika Cases Were Likely Contracted in the US, Officials Say

Three men and a woman in Florida became infected with the Zika virus, likely after being bitten by mosquitoes in the area, officials said today. The cases, which are in Miami-Dade and Broward counties, mark the first time that anyone has caught Zika from mosquitoes in the United States. The...