Zika Virus

This virus has been classified by the World Health Organization as a near-pandemic and rapidly spreading disease.

What's the story? In 1947, in the Zika Forest in a city called Entebbe in Uganda, near Lake Victoria, which is the primary source of the Nile River in Africa, a group of scientists placed a rhesus monkey in a cage in front of their virus laboratory. After a few days, they found the monkey feverish and ill. They examined and analyzed it, discovering a new virus, which they named Zika after the forests they were in. Zika means "overgrown" in the Ugandan language.

In 1952, research conducted in India revealed that many Indians had immunity to Zika, indicating that the disease was old but its discovery was recent. In 1954, the first appearance of the virus in humans occurred in Nigeria.

What does this disease do? Its symptoms include fever, rash, conjunctivitis, headache, muscle and joint pain, and overall malaise. It can also lead to complications such as Guillain-Barré syndrome, an acute inflammation of the nerves, resulting in severe complications. For instance, 25% of patients may require mechanical ventilation, 50% may experience respiratory weakness, and 60% may have difficulty walking.

The most significant symptom of the disease is the deformity of newborns' heads and incomplete brain development, known as microcephaly. It has been scientifically proven that the virus can be transmitted to the pregnant mother's placenta, either from herself or from her partner who carries the virus. One of the most famous cases of this was the American biologist Brian Foy when he fell ill with the virus in Senegal in 2009, and the virus was transmitted to his wife through sexual contact when he returned to America.

What causes this disease? The mosquito is the primary carrier of the Zika virus. The most notorious mosquito species identified by scientists as the most dangerous for spreading the disease is the Egyptian mosquito, scientifically named Aedes aegypti, which also transmits yellow fever and dengue fever.

This mosquito has adapted and thrived in the climates of all continents. However, it is more active in the summer and spring than in the winter.

Currently, the Zika virus is present in most countries worldwide, and the Egyptian mosquito has traveled with travel and trade movements between countries. However, recently, the number of people infected with the disease has increased in certain countries. According to the World Health Organization, these countries include:

More than one million people worldwide.

• 38,000 cases in Brazil (including 49 deaths).
• 13,000 cases in Colombia (including 100 babies with microcephaly).
• 5,500 cases in El Salvador.
• 608 cases in Honduras.

The European Union has declared a state of emergency against the disease due to its spread in several European countries.

Despite all the hype, the disease is not classified as highly dangerous because all its symptoms and complications have treatments, except for the elimination of the virus itself, which has not yet been achieved with either a serum or a vaccine. It is said that it will not be available for at least two years. The main concern is the deformity of newborns.

So far, no one has announced that the Zika virus has spread to Egypt or Arab countries. Although the mosquito is called the "Egyptian mosquito," it is not the same black mosquito that bites us in the summer. The Zika-carrying mosquito has different habits and delivers more severe bites.

Finally, doctors and scientists advise wearing clothing that covers the body from mosquitoes and using insecticides, whether in homes or by having governments spray streets and mosquito breeding sites, such as garbage dumps and sewers. Moreover, they recommend not storing uncovered water to prevent it from becoming a breeding ground for this mosquito. Lastly, travelers to countries where the disease is prevalent, such as South American countries, should take all safety precautions upon arrival at any airport. May God protect us all.