Zika Virus Hits Jamaica – First Microcephaly Baby Born

Kingston, Jamaica (McN) – As per confirmation from the Jamaica Ministry of Health, a baby born in December 2016, at the Victoria Jubilee Hospital in Kingston is confirmed as diagnosed with microcephaly, linking to the Zika virus as the cause.

According to chief medical office Dr. Winston De La Haye, the mother of the baby is said to have developed a rash and high fever during her pregnancy.

Zika virus is reported as passed to the child at birth through a mother infected with the virus. Microcephaly  is a congenital malformation which results in an infant being born with a very smaller than normal head and other neurological conditions. The condition results in the head having a slow growth or failure to grow.

Congenital microcephaly  have been confirmed throughout the world for years. Other conditions that are linked to microcephaly are, herpes simplex virus, rubella virus, lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV), varicella, and syphilis et cetera.

There is no vaccination or cure for Zika virus.

The Ministry of Health has stated that it will update Jamaica on the Zika virus, and give further details about this case.

Zika was first detected in Jamaica in 2016 by the Ministry of Health. All pregnant women in Jamaica are required to be tested for the Zika virus. Health Minister Dr. Christopher Tufton reports that the heath protocol is that all pregnant women that test positive for the Zika virus are tracked and monitored.