The World Health Organization (WHO) expressed its concern on Wednesday over a report which states that the Zika virus had been sexually transmitted in the United States and called for further investigation into the mosquito-borne virus.
The first known case of Zika virus transmission in the United States had been reported in Dallas, Texas on Tuesday by local health officials, who said it likely was contracted through sex and not a mosquito bite.
“We certainly understand the concern. This needs to be further investigated to understand the conditions and how often or likely sexual transmission is, and whether or not other body fluids are implicated,” WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl told Reuters.
“This is the only the second mooted case of sexual transmission,” he said, referring to media reports about a case of an American man who returned from Senegal in 2008 and is suspected of having infected his wife.
Scientists examining and studying the aggressive spread of the virus claim pregnant women can catch it through unprotected sex. At least one UK resident was warned not to have sex without protection after contracting the virus. Leading infectious diseases expert Dr Amesh Adalja at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center says it has been well documented and part of that research was focused in the UK.
The virus which is currently linked to causing severe birth defects in thousands of babies in Brazil, is spreading at a rapid pace in the Americas. WHO officials on Tuesday voiced their concern that it is most likely to hit Africa and Asia as well. Zika had been believed to be spread by the bite of mosquitoes of the Aedes genus, so sexual contact as a mode of transmission would be a potentially alarming development.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed it was the first U.S. Zika case in someone who had not traveled abroad in the current outbreak, said CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden on Twitter.
However, the CDC has not investigated how the virus was transmitted. After this case, the CDC advised men to consider using condoms after traveling to areas with the Zika virus. Pregnant women should avoid contact with semen from men exposed to the virus.
The Dallas County Department of health said on Twitter that the person was infected through sexual contact with someone who had traveled to Venezuela. The person infected did not travel to the South American country, county health officials said.
The Texas Department of State Health Services was slightly more cautious in its assessment, saying in a statement, “Case details are being evaluated, but the possibility of sexual transmission from an infected person to a non-infected person is likely in this case.”
There have been six confirmed travel-related cases of Zika virus disease, all among residents of Harris County, where Houston is located, the Texas Department of State Health Services said. So far in medical literature, there has been only one previous case of Zika transmitted sexually.
“Now that we know Zika virus can be transmitted through sex, this increases our awareness campaign in educating the public about protecting themselves and others,” Zachary Thompson, DCHHS director, said.
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